


Heaven Sent

by Astoria Gracewell (arh581958)



Category: Mortal Instruments Series - Cassandra Clare
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon, Do no know how to mark as incomplete, F/F, Incomplete, M/M, Multi, Post-COHF, Ragnor Fell is alive
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-11-13
Updated: 2015-11-05
Packaged: 2018-02-25 05:04:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 52,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2609567
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/arh581958/pseuds/Astoria%20Gracewell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Trouble brews for the Children of Raziel. A series of events has led the Clave to convene for an emergency gathering. Several things are happening at once: the portals are freezing, some Institutes are being compromised, and no one knows why.  Alec knows he should be worried. However, there is only one thing he can't get out of his head--the boy who fell from the sky calling him "daddy".</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Mostly disregard "Tales from the Shadow Academy" because I haven't read it yet and don't plan to include it in this universe.

Alicante was a beautiful as ever. The high crystal glass walls of the city reflected the setting sun painting the expanse in rich colours of orange, pinks, and purples. It was as warm as it looked. The streets were nearly empty, only a handful of Nephilim children loitering around the plaza. There was even a pair of boys fencing with wooden swords. There was a constant vibration in his right front pocket. With a sigh, Alec reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone.

TWO NEW MESSAGES, the words flashed on his screen. He pressed the middle of the screen to read.

**Magnus:  
** _[10:26am] Guess who woke up alone in a cold bed this morning? I thought you were licking my ear. It turned out to be the Chairman._

 **Magnus:** _  
[10:27am] You didn't tell me you'll be leaving THAT early. *pouts*_

He tapped the keys hurriedly. He hated making Magnus worry, today was supposed to be his off day too and he was looking forward to spending some R&R with his boyfriend.

 **Me:  
** _[11:05am] Sorry. We got a fire message from the Clave._

 

The New York Institute received the fire message in the early hours of this morning. He woke up to the noise made by his vibrating phone on the table. Because of the nature of Magnus' work schedule, he had long decided to silent his phone to give the restless warlock his beauty sleep. He set the mobile to vibrate for only two reasons: one was Magnus, and the second was the Institute. Since his boyfriend had been curled up behind him, it only meant one thing: there was an emergency. He quickly dressed, scribbled a short note, and left the apartment.

**Magnus:**  
 _[11:15am]_ Something wrong? I can cancel the walk-ins.

 **Me:**  
 _[11:17am]_ No need. We're in Idris.

**Magnus:**   
_[11:20am] Alec?_

**Magnus:  
** _[11:23am] That's why your texts are delayed! You had me worried._

**Me:**   
_[11:24am] I'm sorry._

**Me:**   
_[11:24am] We were told to hurry._

**Me:**   
_[11:24am] Make it up to you?_

**Magnus:**   
_[11:29am] You better! I expect a bubble bath and pretzels._

**Me:**  
 _[11:30am] Almond Twist from downtown? Extra caramel and chocolate dipping sauce_.

**Magnus:**   
_[11:34am] You know me so well. <3  \\(^_^)/_

 

"Alec! Alec!" called the short female Shadowhunter with fiery red hair. Her jacket-type zip-up top was open to reveal a maroon t-shirt which had a black stencilled Iron Man facemask design. "What are you doing out here in the heat? We're about to start. Isabelle sent me to find you." She put her hand on her hip and cocked her head. She gave him a _you're-texting-Magnus_ look while shaking her head. Over the course of three years, their relationship had considerably gotten better. He considered her somewhat like a sister now although not as close as Isabelle.

"Aright." he replied with an eye-roll. "I'll see you inside."

"Don't roll your eyes!" she exclaimed, hitting him playfully on the arm. "Be thankful I volunteered instead of Jace or else you'll be red to your ears with all his teasing!" She turned her heel and disappeared through the neoclassical double-doors.

"Okay, okay" He chuckled softly while typing his reply.

**Me:**   
_[11:40am] GTG. Text you when we're done. Love you._

**Magnus:**   
_[11:42am] Kisses! See you later. Don't forget the pretzels!_

 

Alec shoved the phone back into his back pocket and jogged a to catch up to her. She was only one or two meters away from him and he was beside her in no time. Inside, the hall was crowded with nearly a hundred people. Alec scanned the mob, looks like New York wasn't the only Institute summoned by the Clave: the Rosales's, Monteverdes, Ayananos, Weizes, and Chaudhurys, among others were present. There were Shadowhunters gathered from every corner of the world.

"Clary! Alec!" Jace's boisterous voice rose above the buzzing. They found him near one of the large floor-to-ceiling windows. The morning sun was streaming in, making his blonde hair look like it was made of gold. He was too was in Shadowhunter gear with his seraph blade shining in the light. He was leaning back, one foot pressed against the wall and arms crossed over his chest. Clary ran over to him instantly, with Alec trailing behind her.

"Hey" Alec greeted his adoptive brother with a nod. The blonde just nodded back. "Where's Isabelle and Simon? I thought she asked Clary to get me."

Jace huffed, crossing his arms more firmly and rolled his eyes. He cocked his head to one side, gesturing to the couple who were making googly-eyes at each other near the wall. "Oh" Clary and Alec said in unison. The pair appeared to be totally oblivious at their surroundings: Isabelle was leaning against the wall with a pose similar to Jace's and Simon was beside her, curving into her personal space as they talked. It was like they were contained in their own little bubble--just them.

"Maybe we should call them?" Alec suggested, casting the couple one more nervous glance. "You know how dad is..." he trailed off.

"Yeah" Jace agreed _"You know better. I'm the current Inquisitor blah blah blah roles, duties, set an example_!" It was flourished with an exaggerated impersonation of Robert Lightwood. "I don't know why he gets his boxers in a twist. New York still holds the record for demon kills this year and we're going more missions now that Simon's ascended."

"But also the team with the most injuries this part year" Maryse cut in, appearing out of nowhere. If the children were surprised, they did not show it. All three young adult Shadowhunters merely met her eyes. "I don't think your father would appreciate your little speech Jace." then she turned to Alec with a sigh. "And Alec, please pry those two lovebirds apart before Robert comes in. A newly ascended Shadowhunter being beaten to a pulp by the inquisitor is not the impression we want to make."

"Looks like it's serious this time. The Clave wouldn't gather all of us here otherwise." Alec asked when he returned, a grumpy Isabelle and a blushing Simon in-tow.

"What's taking so long? We're been here since dawn." Isabelle complained.

"There's something wrong with the portals in Lisbon, Edinburg, and Cluj. Jia sent the message to Robert. That's all I know so far." Maryse explained. "They had to hire a warlock to make a temporary portal."

"If it's just portals, why don't they get the warlock to just fix it?" Jace questioned.

"Fell doesn't understand what's wrong either."

"Look!" Simon pointed to a small ball of energy beginning to form near the mermaid fountain. It was dark green outline with bronze and copper. It steadily grew bigger until it formed into the shade of an oval full-length mirror.. At the centre, they could see the outline of a woman. Jia Penhallow stepped into the hall, followed by several other Shadowhunters. She wore her formal burgundy Consul robes, hood pulled back to reveal her short dark tresses. The crowd grew silent

"I apologize for my tardiness" she spoke in a gentle but firm voice. Behind her, followed her daughter Alinee and her husband Robert. Then the Monteverdes and the Lamaingers. All in all, thirteen more Shadowhunters filed into the room. Once everyone was out, the portal became opaque until it compete disappeared.

"Consul Penhallow" Robert Lightwood greeted, stepping apart from the group. "Please share your concern with community."

"Good Morning Inquisitor. Late last night, the portal from Edinburg to Idris froze. For the past month, I received news that the same occurred in Cluj and Lisbon. I visited the two Institutes personally. It was the very same thing."

"Frozen? How is a portal frozen?" a male voices from the masses questioned.

"It's broken. It was frozen through like the glaciers in the Antarctica and was smashed like glass from the inside. It was shattered into a million diamond-sized pieces that we couldn't make out a pattern of what it whatever it was. We searched the three Institutes, every crease and crevice but found nothing substantial. There was no demonic energy left from the scenes."

"What did Ragnor have to say?" another voice, this time a female, spoke up.

"Ragnor hasn't seen anything like this before. He went to Baba Angieszka."

"Neither have I" a strong female voice rang out. It came from the grand doors of the hall which were newly opened. In walked in Tessa and the Blackthorns.

"We apologize. The same thing happened in the LA Institute this morning." Arthur Blackthorn stepped up and explained. The Blackthorns, Emma Carstairs, and Christina Rosales. There was a collective gasp from the Clave--there was somebody injured.

"Helen!" Aline yelled, traversing the hall in a frantic run. "Are you alright? What happened to you?"

The family broke their formation and revealed an injured Helen in the middle. Her long blond hair was messily tied into a bun on top of her head. She was wearing a white satin tube dress. Her right was in a cast and sling. Several more bandages covered the right side of her face and neck. One was located directly underneath her eye, just above her cheek.

"Ouch!" she groaned when her girlfriend slammed into her with full-force. "Aline that hurts" she mumbled into Aline's shoulder. The dark-haired girl quickly released her and whispered an apology.

"Helen" It was Robert. "What happened? Weren't you supposed to be in Wrangel Island?"

Helen nodded. "I was. I got a message from  Mark that they were summoned by the Clave too. I took a detour to Los Angeles so I can travel with my family to Idris. I was almost out of the portal when I felt an odd sensation creeping from behind but whenever I turned my back, there was nothing there. When I arrived in LA, there was a blast as I exited the portal. I was thrown into the ground and landed on my arm in the wrong way. I passed out soon after."  

"We took her to the Infirmary and called Tessa to help us get to Idris. Then here we are. We portaled just outside of Alicante." Arthur supplied the rest. The girl beside him suddenly screamed. "Something's falling from the ceiling!"

True to her words, all eyes turned to look up at the ceiling. There was a small figure that was descending with great speed towards the ground. It was a blur of black and silver, spinning straight for the hall's centrepiece.

Jace, who had already seen the object moments ago, already sprinting towards the mermaid statue. He used the edge of the fountain as leverage and jumped into the air. The wetness of the marble made the feat difficult. He stumbled a bit but managed to watch the falling object mid-lunge. It was bigger than he anticipated; it almost took up the entire length of his torso and was heavier too. He used both arms to clutch the black ball and fell to the floor with a sickening crunch.

"Jace!" Maryse, Isabelle, and Clary cried in unison. The entire NY Institute was beside him within seconds. He was crumpled on the floor, lying half on his back and half on his side. He was curled into a ball, protecting whatever it was he had saved from falling.

"Urgh" he groaned loudly, unfolding his arms and letting the object tumble out.

"Uncle Jace, are you alright?" It was the voice of a small child. The blackness, they realized, was a thick robe and the traces of silver coming from its embroidered hems. There was a pair of small hands peaking out of the dark cloth. Pale fingers pressed harshly into his chest, shaking the young Shadowhunter awake. "Uncle Jace, come on!" the hood fell with all the movement and a mop of unruly black hair was exposed. The rough jerks caused Jace to groan out a second time.

"Child, you're hurting him." Maryse said in a gentle voice. She reached out with a shaky hand, tapping the boy on the shoulder. The boy immediately stopped, shoulders visibly sinking. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to." He stopped shaking Jace and slumped back to sit on his legs. "But Uncle Jace won't wake up!"

"Uncle Jace" It sounded so weird coming from her lips. "Is just sleeping. He'll be up in a few minutes. You both had a nasty fall."

The child shifted, curling into a ball. His back resting slightly against the fallen Shadowhunter. His shoulders were shaking frantically. There was a series of sniffles not long after. There was a wave of pity through her chest. Maryse bent down, gathering the small figure in her arms. "It's alright. It wasn't your fault. Hush now." She cooed, sounding very much like the mother that she was. It reminded the Lightwood siblings of how she took care of them as a child. She nodded as Alec took a place on Jace's other side, looking over at his Parabatai's injuries.

"I'm sorry, nana" the boy kept mumbling into her chest.

"Nana?" Maryse stiffened. Who was this child? Where did he come from? There was so many question in her head. Not to mention, they were in a middle of a Clave meeting. But she couldn't let go of the boy who was sobbing in her arms. "What's your name, Child?"

"Li--Liam" he answered between sobs. "Liam Lightwood" But how was that possible? She only had three children: Alec, Isabelle and Max.

"Hi Liam, I'm Maryse."

"I know. You're my nana. Don't you remember me?" at his reply, both Isabelle and Alec turned to her. Their faces covered with both confusion and shock. Then the entire Clave looked Robert, who had the same expression as his children. Clearly he was just as confused as they all were. His expression said _it-wasn't-me_.

Maryse sighed but continue rubbing circles down the boy's back. "Of course I do, Liam. Nana is just a bit old and forgetful. Jace is your uncle?" she felt him nod against her. Uncle, not godfather, that meant that it was he was either Alec's or Isabelle's. That was stupid, they were barely adults! Had Isabelle gotten pregnant and never told her about it? Did Alec get some girl pregnant? Did he even experiment before Magnus?

She needed to ask. She needed an answer. "Liam, which of my children is your parent?"

The boy lifted his head for the very first time. The long bangs fell away from his face and revealed his stunning green and golden eyes. She had seen these eyes before. The pair did not have the usual irises. Instead, there was a black slit in the middle--just like a cat. It wasn't possible, was it? The resemblance was there, the curve of his face, the shape of his nose, the high of his cheeks, and the form of his mouth. There was no denying that he was saying the truth.

"Alec"

There was a loud thud. Alec, who was half-away finished with propping up Jace, stumbled. He fell back down, ass hitting the floor hard. Thankfully Jace's head fell on his legs and not the marble. Angel knows the boy doesn't need another concussion for today. He looked absolutely terrified, paling two shades lighter than he normally was. His mouth hung open.

"Me?"

At the sound of his voice, the child's small head perked up and turned to face him. The resemblance was unmistakable: the unruliness of his jet-black hair, the roundness of his features, and the same sombre expression. It was like staring into pool of the past, a mirror to precisely how he looked like when he was younger. The only difference was a pair of eyes. There was only one other person who possessed the exact same eyes  and he was sure that the warlock was still somewhere in Brooklyn.

"I--I---" but he too stunned for words. He should quit trying altogether.

"Daddy!" the boy cried when he saw the Lightwoods eldest son. The boy jumped out of Maryse' arms and flung himself straight into Alec's. Alec froze in terror, uncertainty building inside his chest like magma in a dormant volcano. The face the stared back at him was the exact same face from his childhood. But the child was a warlock and not a Shadowhunter. How could this be?

"Alec" Robert's voice broke his train of thoughts. "Go see to your brother's injuries in the house. Take the child with you. Check if there for any signs of concussions and the like." It was his father's large hand on his shoulder that gave him comfort.

"Simon, be of some use and help Jace up." he said using his Inquisitor's voice without turning around. "Isabelle and Clary, you head on first and get the beds ready."

"Right" four voices sounded in unison. Alec struggle to stand, adjusting to the new weight on his arms. The boy was still sniffling quite a bit.

"Hey there, little man" Alec cooed. It felt so surreal. It was like his voice was not completely his own. He could not help it. He did not like the ache in his gut when he saw the tears streaming out of the child's gold-green eyes. "Daddy's got you. You're okay. You're okay." He murmured, rubbing small circles on the black robe.

He glanced back at his father who waved his hand. Robert was beside Maryse, helping her to her feet. "Your mother will tell you what happened in the meeting. Go on now." he nodded and stepped into the parted crowd, highly conscious of the eyes following him. He wasn't used to the attention. Liam squirmed in his arms. Apparently, so was the boy. He hugged the small body closer.

"That's a beautiful robe, Liam. Did you pick it?" he asked, attempting to distract the child. It worked.

 The boy shook his head. "Papa did" came the soft reply. If the gold-green eyes weren't enough, the fashion statement solidified his suspicions on the boy's papa.

"Your papa had good taste. Do you wanna go to him later?" the boy nodded. This seemed to stop the earlier set of sobs and calmed the boy down.

"I wanna see papa" he mumbled on Alec's shoulder. "Papa, papa, _papa_..." he chanted until it was nothing but a whisper and he fell asleep. Looks like he got the _I can sleep anywhere_ trait from Alec.

***

Alexander was late. He hated it when Alex was late. Having a Shadowhunter boyfriend had its benefit but it also had his downsides. Danger was a constant in both their lives. Especially now that Clary reached eighteen and Stephen was newly ascended. The pair were newbies, training complete or not; nothing compares to actual experience. Missions were riskier with the new pair. It was a good thing that Alec was not as brash as his siblings. He scouted his missions before deciding on the proper course of actions. It did save him a couple of times.

 

**Sweet-Cheeks:  
** _[3:16pm] Got held up in Idris. See you tonight._

**Sweet-Cheeks:  
** _[5:02pm] I'm sorry, Mags. I'm on my way home._

 

With a sigh, Magnus unlocked his phone for the nth time and read his messages. He heaved his entire body, rolling from his stomach and onto his back. He glanced up at the lime green clock on the wall. It read: **7:25.** It was two hours after the last text. Alec didn't specify whether he was coming from Idris or the institute. There was no telling how long it would take for the Shadow hunter to arrive. So Magnus waited and waited and waited until his eyes closed.

There was a loud buzz which reverberated inside the apartment. Magnus woke with a startle. He jumped out of the bed. Alec still wasn't here. He scowled. _What was taking so long_? The doorbell rang for a second time, earning a hiss from Chairman Meow somewhere in the living room. Probably the ottoman, the cat loved that ottoman. "Alright, alright. I'm coming" he said, to no one in particular. He gave one last stretch and sauntered out of the bedroom.

He was in black silk pyjamas with tigers and flamingos dancing. At the moment, he could care less whether or not it was a client. They did not have an appointment so they cannot expect him to be dressed for business. He did, however, glanced at his reflection on the glass and fixed a few fallen strands of hair back in place. He reached the intercom and boomed in his biggest High Warlock voice.

"WHO DARES WAKE THE HIGH WARLOCK OF BROOKLYN?"

There was no answer.

"Are you dying? Is someone you know dying? If not, please leave a fire message and I'll pencil you in at the earliest convenience."

There was still silence.

"Are you a Jehovah's witness? If you are, I am impressed. How did you find my apartment? It's warded against your people."

He heard rustling on the other side of the intercom and some indistinctive noises.

"Seriously though. I'm not open. I'm waiting for my boyfriend to some back home. So scat or I will magically turn you into a toad!"

He snapped his fingers and let a few sparks fly to the door just to emphasize.

"Wait! Wait!" a male voice came through. Finally! "Magnus, it's me, Alec."

Magnus beamed. "Alexander! Why didn't you say so! I've been waiting for hours. Why didn't you just open the door? Did you lose your key? Wait. Are you _alright_? Are you maimed? Do you need anything? Where have you been? Is there---?"

"Uhm, you can start by opening the door." Alec cut him off.

Magnus mentally kicked himself. He did not realize that he was blabbering through the intercom. "Oh yes, right." he said. He pressed a button and buzzed Alec in. He waited a few minutes until he heard the sound of boots on the rickety steps. There was a thud, like a boot kicking the bottom of the door. He crossed his arms and opened it. "Alexander, I will not have my boyfriend kicking down the door. Unless, of course it's for a game or I'm seriously injured. If it's a game, I can definitely---" he stopped dead, seeing the pair at the doorstep.

"Uhm, hi" Alec said weakly. A figure was huddled on his shoulder, wrapped underneath robe. It was too small to be an adult, it must be a child, Magnus concluded. He could see pale skin and dark jet black hair, sleeping peacefully in Alec's arms.

Magnus' face turned from surprised to questioning. "Is this the part where you tell me you had a one-of say..." he looked over to the slumbering child slumped on Alec's shoulder. "five or six years ago? So that would make you, what, around eighteen? That's about right, we did have brief separation period. When you said you were bringing a surprise, I didn't expect the fruits of a one-time fling being brought to my doorstep. What was she? A mundane? Where did you meet her? A bar? A club? A damsel in distress when you were on patrol? Tell me it was during our break-up. You weren't as devastated as you made yourself to be, weren't you? You little--SLAP!"

He blinked, once because of surprise and a second time to make sure he wasn't dreaming. No, this was as real as it gets and reality came crashing down on him. The white pain on skin was proof enough. He absently palmed the sting on his left cheek. No doubt there would be an angry red palm print there and a bruise tomorrow morning. He looked over at the other man, who was fuming.

"He's yours!" Alec's face was red from rage and not embarrassment. Hurt and anger were mixed in his oceanic blue eyes. The hand he used for the slap still hung in mid-air. "You--you bastard." he spat out venomously. "How dare you?" he stepped forward, leaning up to Magnus as far as the child in his arms would allow. "How.dare.you. insinuate that I would cheat. You took it all, Magnus Bane. You're the only one I have ever been with. There was no girl. There wasn't a one-night stand. There wasn't anything when you _left_ me. No one has ever touched me except for you. You--you--!"

There were tears brimming his pools of blue. As if on cue, the child stirred and began to wake. "Daddy" he mumbled on Alec's shoulder, nuzzling his face on Alec's neck. "Daddy are we home?"

Alec lowered his shaky hand and tenderly rubbed up and down the child's back. "Yes, Liam. We're home."

"Papa?" Magnus raised an eyebrow, unimpressed.

"Yes baby, papa is here too. Do you wanna see him?" Even Alec was surprised with the gentleness of his voice. It was a struck contrast to the malicious tone he had been using moments ago. The child in his eyes nodded and turned around, his small hands rubbing his eyes sleepily and peeked. Gold-green eyes met gold-green eyes. Magnus' eyes widened in pure surprise. It was such an innocent, unguarded look that made all of Alec's anger evaporate.

"Papa!" The boy smiled brightly and lifted his arms. Magnus' heart melted a second time for this decade.

"I told you." said Alec. There was no trace of resentment in his voice, just love. "He's yours."  

"I.You.How?" was all Magnus could say. He gingerly took the child by the armpits until he was cradled against him. Instinctively, he wrapped his arms around the small body and began swaying while patting the child gently. "I don't understand" he looked away, mad at himself for the way he acted and embarrassed at what he had done. "I'm sorry."

"Neither do we" replied Alec. The Shadowhunter rose to his toes and planted a soft kiss on Magnus' cheek. "You're forgiven. Angel knows, I would have reacted worse." he said humorously. "Forgive me too? For slapping you?" Magnus winced when Alec lightly brushed against his cheek. "It's going to bruise tomorrow morning."

"It's fine. I deserved it."

"No, it's not, Mags, and you know it." Alec whispered back. Liam was fast asleep in Magnus' embrace, his head rolling up and down Magnus' shoulder. There was a sudden burst of fondness in his chest. It exploded like a firework and drizzled down like the rain. This is his family, he thought, and he liked the way holding a child did for Magnus' biceps. Oh dear angel, his boyfriend was rubbing off him! "Maybe we can take him to bed?"

Magnus nodded. They padded further into the apartment, Alec pushing the door closed with the heel of his boot. Good thing there were spare bedrooms in the loft. They opened the one nearest their bedroom. It was smaller than the master's bedroom, covered in dark blue walls and matching linen sheets. With a snap, Magnus changed the boy from thick robes to a pair of navy blue pyjamas which was decorated with falling stars.

"Where did you get that?"

"Baby GAP"

"Oh" Alec said quietly. He still wasn't too keen on summoning-slash-stealing stuff. It weighed heavily on his Nephilim conscience.

Magnus gave him a face. "Would you rather I dress our child in a ratty shirt?"

Alec shook his head furiously. "Say it again."

"Say what?"

"What you called him"

"child?"

"Say it with what you said before that."

"Our child?" the look on Alec's face said it all. Magnus' features softened. "Yes, Alexander. He is our child."

"He is, isn't he?" Alec took the space of Magnus side because he belonged there. They must look like idiots peering down a sleepy child with goofy grins on their faces. It was a solid ten minutes before either made a move. "How?" voice Alec. He looked at Magnus with uncertainty. "I'm me. You're you" he said, losing all earlier eloquence he possessed. "I--just--how?"

"I do not know. I'll have to ask Ragnor for help or maybe Catarina."

"Ragnor's away."

"Where?" But Alec's stomach grumbled. "When was the last time you ate?"

"Uhm" he fidgeted. "Mom's blueberry pancakes?"

Magnus put his hands on his hips and teased. "You better have not forgotten the pretzels!" he said, pointing to the paper bag in Alec's hand.

"Oh, yeah." said Alec. He had completely forgotten that he was holding something. "This. Almond Twist, extra caramel and extra chocolate sauce." He brought up the bag to eye level. It was cream coloured with the design printed in gold. _Heaven and Pretzels_ printed in gothic letters.

Magnus smiled like an idiot. He cupped Alec's face with both hands and pressed their lips together. "Oh angel you are amazing!" he breathed. It was a soft kiss filled with endearment but little passion. It was not a sexual kiss but rather an affectionate one. Their mouths curved into each other like pieces of a puzzle, fitting so flawlessly together unlike anything else. They were mesmerized in just the feel of each other. Magnus lowered his head while Alec lifted his, their heights were perfect.

They broke apart panting, lips swollen and red. Magnus licked his lips. Alec's stomach rumbled a second time. "Sexy time later. Food first!" the taller man declared. He laced their fingers together and made their way out of the bedroom, closing it gently behind them.

Chairman Meow greeted the pair in the kitchen. He had this suspicious feline expression which said _are you going to forget my food again?_ Alec took pity of the small tabby and reached for a can of cat food in the cupboard. "No, Chairman. I have your food" he cooed. He rummaged through the drawers until he found a can opener. "Here you are, Chairman." he said, emptying the can onto the food bowl. The cat purred in appreciation, curling into Alec's hand before going for the food.

"That's why the Chairman loves you so much" Magnus mused from behind him. The food was laid out on the breakfast counter. But it wasn't the pretzels he was expecting. Instead, there was a place of angel hair pasta covered with seafood and a bottle of wine.

"Magnus?"

"Pretzels are not a proper meal. So I got us take out from the Italian Restaurant near broad way."

"Magnus! That's stealing."

"Tsk.Tsk.Tsk. Would you rather that I say I leave cash in their money box?"

Alec punched his playfully on the arm and took a seat across him. "You and I both know you don't do that."

"Of course I don't! Such a waste of hard earned money. Besides, it's not stealing if they don't know it's gone. I'll have the plates back after we finish."

Alec shoot his head. "That's not how it works, you know." He took a heaping amount of pasta and loaded it on his plate. "Oh my angel. This is amazing!" he said in-between bites.

"Only the best for you, darling~"

"Even so. I will not have our child stealing food. He needs to learn the value of money."

"Our child" Magnus purred. "I like that. What's his name?"

"Liam. I think it's short for--"

"William"

"Oh, angel" Alec said, blinking. "Did we name our son after William Herondale?" he asked suspiciously.

Magnus laughed. "I suppose we did. Although I never imagined you would allow that" he stated. He remembered how much Alec has opposed the idea of his dealing with previous generations of Shadowhunters. "Maybe you grew up?"

Alec flicked a clam-shell at the other man. "I resent that!"

Magnus swatted the thwarted the clam-attack with a flick of his hand. "Let's not bring up the past when we have our future sleeping in the bedroom. I'll bet you his second name is Maxwell."

Alec thought for a moment and nodded. "I think so too." he said laughing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whew! That was hard! By far this story has the most number of characters I've used---ever. I don't know how that will turn out for me though. Haha. Let's just see. So any guesses who the child is yet? I thought I was rather obvious about it. 
> 
> Write to me. Tell me what you think. Not sure how much potential it does have. I'll need all the input I can get with this story. I only have a rough outline in my head. I am also in need of a beta. Anyone interested? Thanks!


	2. Chapter 2

In the dream, Alec saw a big-open field with trees that towered until the skies were barely seen. He recognized it immediately: the edge of Brocelind Forrest. He could see Alicante in the close distance. There was the familiar glow of a Witchlight, which caught his attention but it was of a pale yellow colour instead of white. He followed it until he stepped on a simple stone path made of Calacatta Oro. It was flat, grey and smooth. It had been placed in several large slabs, the gaps filled in with soil and grass. Alec followed it.

At the end of the trail, there stood a manor. The walls were made of celtic stones in thin, thick, uneven shaped blocks that were fitted together, Alec didn't miss the moss lining the crevices. . The windows were made out of bent wood in the colour of dark mauve. The double-door arch was made of bronze but he could not identify the marks, the shapes were a blur. Deep down, he knew he had seen them before however, right now, the spirals and shapes looked completely random. Yellow Witchlight streamed out of one of the windows. Alec squinted his eyes, trying to see beyond the opaque glass. He saw the three dark outlines which were masked by shadows.  

Then he heard it, an ear piercing scream so loud that birds erupted from the trees. His body froze in place, coldness engulfed him like a blizzard, he couldn’t believe it---the voice was his.

Alec bolted awake, throwing back the thick lilac comforters of their bed The crisp air curling around his body like a cold embrace. He was covered in a fierce sweat and his pale blue silk pyjamas were clinging uncomfortably like a second skin. He shivered. The dream, had been so real. He could feel his heart thundering in his chest with a frantic staccato that drummed up to his ears.

"Alec, darling?" Magnus sleepy voice broke his inner monologue. Gold-green eyes peeked out from half-lidded eyes, glowing in the darkness. Even with the dark shadows of the night, he saw the concern. "You're shivering" said Magnus, lifting his own body out of the covers. He was only dressed from the waist down. His discarded pyjama top folded on the chair beside him. With one swift move, be encircled his arms around Alec and pulled the younger boy to him. "And you're sweating."

"Sorry" Alec mumbled into the tanned chest. "It was just---Magnus, it was horrible!"

"Tell me about it?" Magnus asked, lazily tracing over Alec's damp pyjama top. He lifted Alec's chin tenderly, meeting the deep blue eyes with his. His purple nail-polished thumb brushed back the jet-black strands sticking on Alec's pale forehead. The younger man looked so vulnerable, so open, and so afraid. He had not seen Alec like this in four year; the last time was just before the Mortal War. "Alexander, you can tell me."

"I--" instead of talking, Alec pressed his face closer to the hand on his cheek. He curved into Magnus' touch, seeking comfort. ~~[~~ Adenaline] was still rushing through his veins. He closed his eyes but no images came. "It was a dream but I don’t remember it now." He curled further into Magnus' warm embrace and inhaled the scent of his boyfriend. Magnus' smell calmed him like a breath of fresh air in stark contrast to the Brooklyn odours.

He was pliant and obedient when Magnus began unbuttoning his top. He received soft feather-like kisses on his exposed skin. He sighed appreciatively with Magnus' ministrations. The supple finger tips brushing against his scarred flesh, tracing all the lines like they were an art piece. There was nothing he needed, nothing he wanted, aside from the man caressing him right now. He melted under Magnus' touch, sensing lips hovering millimetres away from his skin. Just a little more and---

"Daddy? Papa?" a small voice came from just beyond the door, then the door creaked open. Light coming from the hallway streamed into the blackness of their bedroom. The outline of a boy appeared from the doorway, clutching the doorknob like it was a lifeline.

Magnus moved in one fluid motion: snapping his fingers to change Alec's clothes, untangling himself from the bed, and scooping up the boy into his strong arms. Then he spun around, earning a squeal of laughter from Liam. "More! More!" the child demanded. The warlock was all too willing to comply. He twirled around using his forefoot as a pivot point and laughed along until they were both squeamish.

"Do you want to give daddy a morning hug now?" he asked, feeling a strange sort of fondness when he looked into eyes that mirrored his. Liam's eyes were dark green pupils with shimmering flakes of gold. The boy's face was reminiscent of Alec, sharing the sharp Lightwood features of high cheeks bones and angular jaw. He watched the boy nod. He padded closer to the bed, depositing the small child in Alec's arms. He decided that he liked the way the father-and-son pair looked.

There was only one word repeating in his mind--family. For the longest time, he believed that Alexander would be the only family he would ever know. Now, he had been proved otherwise.

"Good morning, Liam" Alec greeted, enveloping the child in his arms. "Did you sleep well?" the boy nodded. "How about breakfast?" he asked, running his fingers absently through the loose ebony locks. At the moment, he debated whom Liam inherited his hair form. It was kept long much like his own but the tresses had a softness that his hair never had.

The couple waited a good five minutes until the lad finally spoke. "Pancakes!" Liam declared.

"Fantastic choice!" Magnus agreed, rubbing his hands together and prepared to summon their breakfast. "Where will it be? Chelsea's? Breakfast Maven? Nixie Fixies? Milk Bar? Fairway Cafe?" he shot out their list of favourite breakfast places but got no response. He did not falter. "No? Locanda Verde? Gelatissimo? Bliss Mist? Rogue Truffles? Still no?" he groaned. "Please, do not tell me we let you grow up with McDonalds. That place is disgusting!" but Liam merely blinked at him with confusion.

Magnus surrendered with a huff and turned to Alec with pleading eyes. It was like a tag-team in wrestling. Alec leaned over Liam's shoulder. "Papa is a bit rusty. Can you tell daddy which pancakes you want to eat?"

 "Nana's!"

Magnus paled.

Alec threw his head back and laughed. Suddenly Magnus didn't mind that they had to rush through the morning commute through throngs of people just to get to the institute and that he had a client appointment at ten o'clock am. He took a quick look at the clock. Nor did he care that it was only five past five in the morning. The identical grins on Alec and Liam's faces were worth it.

"Alrightie then!" he said with a clap of his hands. "Chop! Chop! Maryse serves breakfast early. Let's get ready."

***

Dressing Liam, Magnus determined, was much easier than dressing Alec. For every bit of stubbornness that the elder Lightwood contained, the younger one was more compliant. It all felt surreal. He had a kid out of the blue and for the first time in his immortal life he was experiencing the joys of parenthood. By far, he enjoyed dressing up Liam the most. It was like a miniature version of Alec! So much so, that he was retched with himself because he found it endearing. Since they became parents without warning, he would make sure that they both looked good doing it.

It was surprising how quickly they fell into sync. Alec sauntered into the kitchen and made coffee while Magnus drew a bath. Liam dutifully went straight to the cabinets and took out the Chairman's food. When the coffee was ready, Alec poured a cup for each adult and brought the hot beverage into the bathroom where Magnus was helping Liam bathe.

"Here" he whispered, placing the mug the flat surface of the tub. It was creamy and sweet just like how Magnus liked it. The warlock took it gratefully and let Alec continue washing Liam's back. After which, they took turns taking showers. Alec washed the dishes while the pair continued to dress in the bathroom. Finally, they were all bathed, refreshed, and impeccably dressed. The trio left the apartment at quarter past six.

Magnus was dressed with a purple plaid double-breasted blazer, a wife black wife beater underneath and a pale blue pocket square. The pocket had the signature MB embroidered in glittery blue thread. He wore light blue jeans, held up by a simple brown leather belt with a few small studs lining up in pairs. On his neck, he wrapped around a yellow and pink cashmere scarf which he knotted loosely in front. On his feet were a pair of brown suede shoes. To top of his look, he wore a burgundy fedora which was lined with aquamarine zebra patterns.

Alec was dressed in a similar fashion. He wore a layered outfit composed of a plain black shirt, a red hoodie, and a simple brownish-gray blazer. His hands were covered in black Shadowhunter leather gloves. He wore a darker set of jeans which fit his legs snugly. The black boots and weapon's belt completed the entire look. None of his clothes were frayed or tattered. Over the years, Magnus had made it his personal mission to rid the Shadowhunter of his bad clothing choices. It was not because of pure aesthetics, Magnus realized that Alec easily felt cold and having holes in his clothes was causing a problem.

Today, Liam was Magnus's pet project. The mini-Alec wore a stylish black turtle neck and a loose orange blazer. The jacket had angel wings embroidered in white on each side, right where the single-button was placed. The sleeves were folded over, revealing the blue satin and grey polka dots on the inner lining. He had bluish-green coloured jeans covering his legs, which were given the same folded treatment and revealed the red socks underneath. His feet were secured in tall brown khaki boots with black laces. To complete the look, Magnus placed an adorable knitted grey hat with silver diamond-pattern threads and a red pompom.

They strode out of the apartment hand-in-hand, looking like the perfect inter-race gay couple, with Liam in the middle of his parents. Mornings in Brooklyn were normally cold, today was no exception. Their breaths clouded in white puffs as they walked. There was a big grin on the boy's face, Magnus was beaming, and Alec had a relaxed smile. Liam was skipping between the two adults. Magnus was singing a merry little tune and Alec was half-heartedly humming along.

"We should bring something" pointed Magnus, gesturing to the small family-owned bakery over the next corner. Alec anxiously looked over at his boyfriend. They had been steadily dating for the better part of four years but he was still nervous when be brought Magnus along for breakfast. It was rarer than the bloody red moon! Even with Robert all the way in Idris, Maryse and Magnus retained their rocky relationship. "Come on, Alexander. I promise we can buy the mundane pastries that Isabelle loves."

"Daddy! We need to bring _Pia_ chocolate muffins!" Liam announced without a moment's hesitation. He peered up, looking at Alec with big green puppy dog eyes which looked strange because of his black slit-pupils. The strangeness did not faze Alec for one bit. It was the most adorable thing he had ever seen. His chest bubbled with an unfamiliar feeling but he liked it.

"Alright" Alec agreed after a few seconds. He turned to Magnus and asked “ _Who’s Pia_?"

"Auntie Izzy's!" Liam confirmed. Alec almost fainted but soft blue sparks immediately brushed over his cheeks. Magnus turned to him with a worried expression.

"I'm fine" he managed to say. Within two days, his entire world had becometopsy-turvy all over again. He had given up having children with Magnus but in-between them was proof that miracles still existed. That was only the tip of the iceberg. Apparently, even after all the animosity between his family and his boyfriend, they were one big happy family sometime in the future. Their son--how he loved saying that in his head--loved Maryse's pancakes, which would mean they frequented the Institute. Now, they were getting glimpses of even Isabelle's future. It was just too weird!

They made their way to the bakery without breaking formation. The brunette shop girl greeted them with a smile and blushed as soon as the entire family passed through the door. Her tell-tale expression made it obvious she was one of _them_. He never understood why females were so keen on admiring 'boy's love' like it was some kind of divine phenomenon. It wouldn't come as a surprise if she was in one of those fanclubs who read (and sometimes wrote) gay romance fiction like a cult.

"Hello" Magnus spoke, leaning read her name on the tag. "Bridgette. We'd like two dozen assorted pastries, if you please."

"Muffins!" Liam tugged on his purple sleeve.

"Oh yes, and two chocolate muffins. All to go, please." he spoke in a subdued warlock-business voice. Alec was not used to the professional Magnus Bane. Not even after all the years together, perhaps he never will. He glanced back at Alec who was making his way to one of the tables. "Darling, anything for you?"

Alec took a peek at the menu drawn on the chalk board. "Tea. You can choose which one."

Magnus spun back to a red-faced cashier. Maybe she wasn't used to males being this affectionate even if said males were out of the closet. He internally shook his head. No, they were just too damn gorgeous for her mundane eyes to take, he decided. "One regular chai tea, hold the sugar and the milk, one large white mocha latte, and a small serving of warm milk."

"S--sure. Anything else?" the tall man shook his head and handed her the payment.

Alec and Liam were seated on a window booth, right below the bakery's sign. They looked like a picture from some long-forgotten mundane movie. He strode over, taking a seat from across the two brunettes.

"Hi" he said with a smile, uncaring if he looked like a love-sick fool at the moment.

"Hi" Alec replied meekly.

"I got us all drinks. So we'll have to wait for a few minutes. Liam, are you hungry?" Magnus asked, turning to the boy with an aura that screamed FATHERHOOD. It took Alec a few minutes to regain himself. The boy shook his head. "Okay but I got you warmed milk." Instantly the small boy beamed like he was the happiest kid in the world.

"You're the best papa!" he exclaimed, lunging for Magnus and wrapping his short pale arms around the man's neck. He was half-way on top of the table because of it.

"Magnus" Alec said with a chuckle. "You're spoiling him."

Magnus just gave a cocky smirk back. "So?"

"One regular chai tea for" the barista's voice rang through the empty store. There was a pause and a miserably hidden giggle before the boy continued. "THE-MOST-GORGEOUS-MAN-IN-THE-WORLD! One regular chai tea for--"

"That would be him!" Magnus yelled, pointing to the poor Shadowhunter who was red up to his ears. Alec huffed, stumbling out of his seat and to the counter to pick up his drink. The barista gave him a wink and passed a napkin along with the drink. It had a number scribbled on it. _Call me_ , the guy gestured and picked up the next drink.

Barista-guy paled when he started reading. "One large white mocha latte for THE-MOST-GORGEOUS-MAN-IN-THE-WORLD's (audible gulp) boyfriend." At the name, Magnus was beside Alec giving the poor, unknowing, barista a death glare.

"That would be me" he announced, without a hint of subtleness. "And that" he pointed to the small drink that was next. "Is _our son's_ milk." He took the smaller cup, set-down the boy in his arms, and handed him the warm cup of milk. Then he proceeded to wrap a long arm around Alec and lead them away, box of pastries in hand. He passed a small brown paper bag to his boyfriend.

"You know" he whispered, bringing their lips so close that they were almost kissing, squishing Liam between them. " _That_ is making me rethink the glamours."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the domestic fluff. I'll get on with the plot in the next chapter. :)


	3. Chapter 3

After the Dark War, Magnus had re-done the wards and glamour that covered the Institute. It took him an entire week to finish, not to mention, he did the whole thing for free. Afterwards, he was stuck in bed for two days straight regaining his energy. It was the last time, he vowed to himself, he was going to help the Nephilim without asking for payment. Except, maybe in the case of the eldest Lightwood's safety. Everything else, mission-related or not, was charged with his normal (extremely over-priced) Nephilim rate.

At first glance, the institute appeared to be an old abandoned church that had been forgotten by the years. The wards were stronger now, taking much more than simple Sight to see past the gloomy exterior. The yellow police tape remained. Now, there were several random graffiti marks and old half-torn posters. It also had a murkiness that threatened a faith worse than death for trespasses. That was Magnus' special touch to ward of unsavoury mundanes. The best part of it all was that it did not affect Shadowhunters, to them it was the clear vision of the grand Institute facade.

Alec took out a key, a big bulky bronze key that looked like it fit a pirate chest better than the padlock on the gate. He pressed it in and turned. The lock made several clicking noises before popping open. The black iron fence swung to the side with a gush of wind like they just opened a sealed tomb. He led his family up through the yellow-stone path and rang the doorbell.

"Alec?" Isabelle's head peered through the thick wooden doors. With a grunt, she pulled the heavy doors farther into the Institute. "What are you doing here? We didn't expect you until tomorrow. You said you'd take the day off and get Liam settled in, right?"

The older Lightwood nervously ran a hand through his hair. "Is mom there?" he asked, pushing them all inside without answering any of his sister's questions.

"Alec" a deeper female voice came from the staircase. Maryse stood in her casual robes, a dark rose pink colour that reached the floor. It was tied together with a thick golden twined rope belt that she knotted around her waist. "You brought Liam" she looked past thea boy to Magnus "and the warlock."

"It's Magnus, actually."

"Uhm. Liam actually..." she gave them both the _get on with it_ look. Alec straightened up. "We're actually here for breakfast. Liam was asking for your pancakes this morning so we thought we'd drop by. Is that okay?" He returned her look with pleading eyes.

"We come bearing gifts!" Magnus announced, bringing up the bag of pastries higher. Isabelle looked past him and kneeled in front of the child with a smile. 

"Aren't you adorable?! I bet your papa dressed you up, didn't he?"

Maryse, for all her sternness, simply folded her hands in defeat. She sighed and proceeded to climb down the stairs. "I am not your personal cook. If I must do the work, _you_ are helping me in the kitchen. I will not allow my grandson to be fed on nothing but take-away! It's time you, Alexander, learned to cook." She was serious. She only called him by his full name on two instances: one, he was in trouble, and two, she was mad. He was confident it was a mixture of both at the moment. He was whisked away into the kitchen.

"Perfect!" Magnus, in attempts to lighten the situation, pulled Isabelle's arm. "I wanted to go through the GAP collection for Liam's clothes. I want him to be the most fashionable kid in the whole of Brooklyn! Isabelle, perhaps we can browse the catalogues in the library?" He prayed so desperately that she would play along. Thank the Angel she was just as excited about baby clothes.

She squealed. She bent down, facing the boy at eye level. "Should we wake up Uncle Jace?" the boy nodded enthusiastically. "Alright. You remember where it is?" the boy shook his head. She offered him her hand and led the way, Magnus trailing behind them.

Half-way through the trek, Liam gently tugged her hand. "Where's Pia?"

"Pia?" Isabelle repeated with confusion. It was Magnus who swooped down on his knees and faced Liam. With his eyes, he told Isabelle to keep quiet.

"Liam, you have to listen to papa carefully okay? All your cousins aren't here. It's just you, Papa, Daddy, Nana, Aunt Izzy, and Uncle Jace, in the Institute right now."

"Aunt Clary? Uncle Simon?"

Magnus planted a kiss on the back of the boy's hands. "They will be here after breakfast. They're still at home."

"Not live here? Why?" the boy gazed up with his own unique expression of that looked more like he just peed himself.

Magnus shook his head. They had been confronted with lots of information of the future for the past twenty-four hours. It needed to stop, like right now. "Liam, do you trust papa?" he asked in a voice that did not sound like his own. It wasn't sarcastic, it wasn't demanding. It was soft and filled with so much affection that he thought he reserved for only Alec. The boy nodded.

"Do you remember where you are?"

"Institute"  

"Do you know what year it is?" Magnus realized that this was not the best place to have this conversation. It was the middle of the corridor of the residential wing. But he already started it, might as well jump head first.

Liam shook his head quietly, confusion clear on his face. He looked scared like he had done something wrong. It was not until Magnus took his hands and squeezed did the situation grow better.  

"Baby, it's 2010." He gave him a reassuring squeeze. "You were sent back to the past. Do you remember that?"

Liam, again, shook his head.

"What do you last remember before knocking down Uncle Jace?"

Liam's face contorted, like he was struggling to remember. He shook his head for a second time and his eyes were beginning to moisten. "You're not m' papa? (sniffle) papa?" Magnus shook his head and the boy clearly misinterpreted his intentions. Damn the concept of double-negatives! He scooped the boy into his arms.

"Of course I am. Just a bit younger than you remember."

Tears welled up in those bottle green eyes. " Papa-- _hiccup_ \--still love me?" Liam said through his sniffles. 

"Silly boy" Magnus whispered, pulling the boy close to him. He buried his face into the boy's shoulder. Gucci be damned! He didn't care if there was snot dripping on his shoulder. "Silly, silly boy, just like your daddy. Of course, I love you. Your daddy and I still love you. We love that you are in our future. No matter what time it is, that will never change."

Eventually, the boy's sniffles died down until the walls were deafeningly come. "Come" Magnus stated, straightening up, his hands never letting go. "Let's go re-introduce you to uncle Jace!" Liam gave him a small smile and nodded. Isabelle fell in step with them, taking a place beside Magnus. Despite her height, she was a good half a feet below him in heels. Her long black hair was braided on her back.

"You're good at that" Isabelle said. It sounded more like an observation than a compliment. "Did you ever have kids?"

Magnus snickered. "I don't know what they teach you Nephilim nowadays. Half-breeds can't have kids." he replied back in a voice only meant for her to hear.

The girl said nothing but pointed to the child pacing beside him. "Infertile, huh?"

The warlock rubbed the back of his head. "Well, I do admit that this was definitely unexpected."

"That's got to be the understatement of the century! Explain to me how you knocked up my _brother_? Even if it is in the future!" Isabelle snorted.

"That's absurd." He laughed. "I adore how much you trust my abilities as a warlock but this does happen until the future. How am I supposed to know? It hasn't happened yet."

"He--" said Isabelle, gesturing once more to the child. "--seems happy. I bet you and Alec make wonderful parents."

"That he is" replied Magnus, glancing over the small bobbling figure "and that" he paused, uncertin if he should be telling her this at all. The thought of having children or parenthood was something of a taboo between them before this whole incident happened. Never in his wildest dream did he let himself think he could ever side a child. He was a warlock for crying out loud! It was something, supposed to be, biologically impossible. Yet, apparently, Liam was proof that he could. The fact that Liam was a Lightwood made his stomach flutter more times them he can count. Whilst he'd never pushed Alec to surrogate or donate, not having children had become something they had both grown to accept. If this was a sick joke, he would hunt down the demon responsible for giving him all he could ever want and taking it away.

"t-that, I want us to be." he ended, albeit a bit shaky. He debated with himself on whether or not he should tell Izzy who this 'Pia' person was, but ultimately decided that he could save that information for another time.

"Second door to the right" Isabelle proclaimed, making the bouncing brunette speed up. Liam battered through the door like a football player and shot head-first into the bed with playful screaming.

"Uncle Jace! Uncle Jace! Uncle Jace!" he said in-between his bounces. He used his powerful knees to spring himself up a feet or two into the air each time. "Wake up! Nana's making pancakes! Wake up or papa will eat them all again!"

Jace groaned, rolling onto his side and buried his face under his pillow. "Leave me alone Izzy" he mumbled sleepily. He was fully intent on going back to sleep.

"Uncle Jace!" Liam whined, changing his tactics from jumping up and down the bed to pushing the blond male off the bed. He took his stance behind the Shadowhunter, propped properly on his knees and pushed with all his might. Jace, clearly had height and weight advantage. There was no way Liam could push him off the bed. Unless--

BLAG. Jace fell on the floor.

"You didn't"

"Shh" Magnus shushed the girl beside him, flicking away the remnants of his blue sparks.

"Oh my god. He's going to kill you!" Isabelle warned.

"He can try." Magnus replied with a smirk. "Besides, look at that face and tell me you can still get mad?" he said, pointing to the vibrant expression on Liam's face. Isabelle crossed her arms and shook her head.

"If I ever get kids, remind me to pay you back the favour."

"My dear Isabelle, be careful what you wish for." he said with a knowing grin.

"ARGH!" Jace finally woke up with moan of pain. "Isabelle Lightwood you are so---"

"Uncle Jace!"

"Uhm, yes" he stuttered, still groggy with sleep. Oh yes! They brought the boy home last night. What was his name again? Li-something. It didn't help that he half-conscious for their first encounter either. Now if he could only remember the name...

"It's Liam" a voice supplied for him.

"Nana make pancakes!" The child gushed with unparalleled glee, reaching over and tugging on his arm. "Let's go!"

"What time is it?"

"It's 7:24. You already slept in lazy bones." another voice supplied again, it was a female this time.

"Magnus? Izzy?" he called out, scrambling on the bed with little avail. Dammit. His leg was asleep.

"The Magnificent Warlock of Brooklyn at your service. I do charge for home-calls, you know?" Magnus teased. He was leaning against the wall beside the door. Isabelle, who stood beside him, did not bother with introductions. She too had her arms crossed but unlike Magnus, her expression was one of impatience.

"Where's Alec?"

"He's in the kitchen with mom. They're making pancakes."

"Blueberry pancakes?"

Isabelle took a whiff into the hall but could smell nothing but wood and dust. Magnus did the same. "Yes, unless there’s some other kind of berry which you put in your pancakes. Really, you Nephilim are so weird!"

"Come on then. We start training at nine! Clary and Simon are coming over after breakfast." said Isabelle.

"Yes. Right." Jace shrugged on a better shirt and loose fitting jeans. All four of them headed for the door when something finally clicked.

"ALEC IS MAKING PANCAKES?!"

***

 

Breakfast smelled divine with the aromas of the kitchen leaking into the corridor. At first, it was the scent of butter being caramelized mixing in with the saltiness of sunny side-ups lingering in the air. Then the hearty aroma of sausages drifted into hallway followed soon after. As they drew closer, they could make out the distinct sizzle of meat on the stove-top griddle. It was enough to make their mouths water and their stomachs grumble.

 "Oh my god. It smells heavenly." Isabelle stated as Jace pushed through the wooden door.

"I can't believe it" the blond muttered under his breath in disbelief. He nearly fell to the floor when the small child ran past his legs.

Alec was behind the island counter, utterly focused on the task at hand. His normally loose hair was tied into a haphazard ponytail. He wore a dark grey faded apron over his plain black shirt. The jacket and leather gloves lay on the other side of the chaos. He was half-glaring at the stove-top, concentrated on making pancakes. His cheeks stained with pancake batter. It took all of Magnus' magnificent self-control not to stomp over and have him right there on the countertop. Shadowhunters morals be damned! If it wasn't for the unruly mop of black hair peaking from behind the counter, he would have. He needed to stop himself from being an seven-hundred year old horny warlock. He was a father now, he thought indignantly, by accident or not he should act like one! He settled on the colour pink and how he'd Alec a pink apron next time.

Behind him Maryse, working on the grill and cooking sausages. "You're late" she spoke without turning around. The reaction was immediate, it was obvious who she was talking to.

"Sorry, I--" but Maryse cut him off.

"If you're finished gawking, run up the attic and look for a high-chair for Liam. You should know where it is. You were the one tasked to keep it."

Jace paled for two reasons. He remembered that high-chair. First, it was Max's. How many years had it been? It has been five years since the youngest Lightwood's death. Second, was that he threw it out a year into Max's death from sheer anger and loss. He had to sneak out the back of the Institute to dispose of what remained of the poor chair. "Shit"

This time, Maryse turned around. Her icy look, daring him to confirm his misdeed.

"No fear, Maryse." Magnus cut in and gave Jace a _you-so-fucking-owe-me-Nephilim-and-I-expect-to-be paid-in-pure-gold_ look. He snapped his fingers and the trendiest new high chair appeared beside the dining table. "Ahh the beauty of plastic" he sighed, briefly admiring the elegant and compact design. He took a spot on the dining table, right beside Alec's usual chair. Jace gave him a thankful look and slid across him.

"Daddy, why are you making nana's pancakes?" Liam quipped. He was by his daddy's side, peering up with a curious expression.

"Nana is making sausages for papa and the others."

"You know, mom, that's unfair!" Isabelle commented, pushing herself on one of the counter stools with a huff. She crossed her legs, leaned back, and plucked one of the blueberries from the top of the pancake stacks. "How come you never teach me how to cook? Hey these are pretty good."

Maryse frowned and shook her head. "I'm sorry dear. It's just not your strong point. I think that Alec inherited my skills in the kitchen instead of you." she joked. That was a first. Magnus' impression of Maryse was a stern, cold-hearted, Dragon Lady (if dragons existed). Now, here she was; domesticated and motherly and nice. She was acting like a mom and--oh god no—a grandmother. It was so weird. "Alright, we're just about finished. Hop to the table, both of you." She ordered as though she were in full Shadowhunter gear instead of wearing a night robe.

Isabelle brought Liam to the table and helped him on the high-chair beside Magnus. "Up you go, right next to--" she paused, thinking carefully at what exactly to call Magnus "--your papa."

"Breakfast is ready!" Maryse called out.

Alec rounded the counter, a few steps behind his mother. He was holding the plate of pancakes, a bottle of maple syrup, and butter. Maryse was carrying two plates: one filled with grilled sausages and the other with sunnies. It looked as good as it smelled, not a single pancake was burnt! It was a splendid job given Alec's little practice in the kitchen.

Magnus soon realized that breakfast in the Institute was a noisy affair, with the barely adult siblings squawking at each other like banshees in heat. Okay, maybe it was just Isabelle and Jace. He was seated across the arguing pair, fully devoted to the blueberry pancakes which were his boyfriend's creation. Alec was seated beside him, quietly eating his own breakfast. Beyond Alec, Maryse had a full-blown smile while talking to her grandson.

"My god Izzy! Even Alec cooks better than you!" Jace teased, forking a large chuck of pancake into his mouth. "I thought you were terrible and this just proves It." he continued in-between bites, swallowing down the food like he was derived of food.  "I think I can actually get through this breakfast without having to run to the bathroom"

Isabelle made a face then kicked him underneath the table. "Oww!" he howled in pain, shooting his chair backward with a screech.

"Serves you right for being mean!" she snapped back without even looking.

"For once Blondie is right. This is amazing, darling" Magnus nodded after taking a bite. To prove his point, there was the tell-tale sign of syrup dribbling on the side of his mouth. Alec's eyes followed it longingly. Smirking, Magnus thrust out his tongue and licked it. He could see Alec fidgeting uncomfortably even without turning to the side.

"I, uhm, thanks?" Alec replied shyly. There was a light blush dusting his cheeks. He ducked, fully intending to shy away from the conversation with his siblings. He had discarded the apron on the counter leaving him in a black shirt and his dark blue jean. Over all he was pristine, save for the tiny remnants of flour sticking on his hair, right above his ear. Magnus reached for it without a second thought.

"Magnus?" It was not an accusation per se. It was more like surprise. Alec blushed deeper when their skins touched. "What--what are you doing _right here_?"

"You've some--" he reached one more time to get all the white powder out "--flour on your hair." he leaned in close, creating a shameless display of public affection. "We have a son, _darling_ , the secret to your innocence has long sailed away. The cat's out of the bag now, sweet-cheeks" 

Alec almost fell off his chair right there and then.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you my fabulous beta, shmikoprincess, who has been nothing but a darling by helping with story details! You are priceless, my dear!


	4. Chapter 4

The doorbell rang as the family was finishing their breakfast. The entire stack of pancakes had disappeared and the jar of maple syrup was now empty. Jace scraped off the last remaining bits of blueberries with his spoon.

"You are such a pig! Why does Clary even put up with you?" Isabelle complained, moving to get the door.

"I'll get it" Magnus volunteered by raising his hand. He stood up and pushed back his chair under the table. "That was a lovely breakfast, Maryse," he said, directing it to the woman who sat at the head of the table. She inclined her head ever-so-slightly as a response. He shrugged, briefly wondering if their relationship would ever improve.

"Liam" he called, casually walking over to the boy. "Papa is leaving now. Do you want to give papa a good luck kiss for work?" His goofy smile grew bigger when his son gleefully nodded and gave him a sloppy peck on the cheek. It was sure to smudge his make-up but he couldn't care less when his boy looked at him like that. "Alright. You remember what papa told you, right? No spoilers for Aunt Izzy and the others, okay?"

"Yes, papa!" Liam confirmed.

"I'm going back to Brooklyn. You know, being the High Warlock means I have icky work and clients. I'll text you if I can pick you guys up for dinner." he said to Alec. He leaned down and planted a chaste kiss on his boyfriend's cheek. It still made the Shadowhunter blush.

"I know. I'll text you" Alec said, briefly holding on to Magnus' sleeve. He hated the fact that his hair was tied up. It gave the rest of his family a full view of his face when he spoke. It was embarrassing! "See you tonight."

"I promise" replied Magnus, stealing a kiss from Alec's lips before rushing out the door leaving the Lightwood (plus Herondale) family bickering behind him. At least he could remember how to get back to the elevator without getting lost.

The doorbell rang a second time before Magnus answered the door.

"Finally!" Simon groaned when the big wooden door was opened. "I've been here for ages! What good is a newly ascended Shadowhunter for when he is old and wrinkled?" Like any other day, he was dressed in a t-shirt with a band name printed across, cargo pants and sneakers. Today, he had decided, it would be metallic.

Magnus slumped on the door with a smirk. "Missing your immortality again, daylighter?" a voice teased without forgoing the old nickname. It was familiar but not immediately identifiable.

It took him a while to identify the person who opened the door, usually it was Isabelle who answered. He expected her tall slender frame to greet him and maybe a hello kiss if he was lucky, instead the person who answered the door was of the wrong gender. "Magnus? What are you doing here so early?"

"Expecting someone else, I see. Hope it wasn't Blondie." The other man didn't even blink but his smirk reached up to his cat-like eyes. "Brought my boys over for breakfast. The young one was craving his nana's pancakes."

The brunette just stared wide-eyed. Oh right, he remembered, the kid from yesterday in Alicante. "I haven't been a vampire in four years. I'm pretty sure that's against Nephilim rules or something. How's the kid?"

"He's fine. His eating habits need work though. He eats like Jace sometimes."

"Well, aren't you Mr. Dad? Taking to parenthood easily, I see."

"It's papa, actually. Alec is daddy." The warlock laughed and pushed the door open wider. He made a grand sweep of his hand, gesturing for Simon to enter.  "And yes I am enjoying fatherhood. You will too. Go right in. They're all in the kitchen finishing breakfast. I think there's a half-eaten sausage left." he said, stepping out onto the pavement. 

"No thanks. I had breakfast before coming here." Simon said, making a face. "Still have to keep pretences in front of Mom and all. You and I both know which one of us likes sausages and it sure as hell ain't me." he shot out as the door closed behind him. Even with the heavy wood between them, he heard the distinct sound of a body hitting the ground. He almost doubled-over in laughter before reaching the elevator, tears stinging his eyes. Now, where was the kitchen again?

Simon rarely visited the Institute's kitchen. Mostly because his girlfriend could possibly be the greatest female demon assassin in the world but she was, in fact, probably one of the worst cooks in all of Nephilim history. Guess you really couldn’t have it all. They normally ate take-out in the den or in their rooms. On the occasions that the Matriarch was home and prepared a meal, he was sorely not invited.  He took no offense in it at all. The last time he joined them for dinner, Maryse pulled him to the side and gave him an hour long lecture about proper family planning. That was something he was not yet prepared for! Kids at twenty-one? He was raised with mundane morals, twenty-one was definitely too young. Thirty-one, maybe he'll think about it.

"Oh thank god" he breathed a sigh of relief when he recognized the door to the kitchen. He was already doubting his navigation skills. The Institute was still as confusing as the first day he stepped inside. It was filled with endless hall ways, doors which led to nowhere, and a few dead-ends. The only places he knew his way off to by heart was the training room, the library, the den, and Isabelle's bedroom. Not that he would admit the last one out loud.

When he entered the kitchen, there was not a single person in sight. The rectangular table was cleared and wiped down. The eight chairs were pushed back into place and there was a high-chair that he had never seen before, he suspected that it had been added just this morning. It was placed near the counter.  Then the sound of plates being stacked together notified him that he had company. "Hello?" he called out to his unknown companion.

"It's me Simon." A head appeared from behind the counter. It was a face he could recognize even in the thick crowd of millions. Isabelle squatted in front of the dish washer, dutifully stacking the plates as though she were playing a game of Tetris. It was efficient at getting all the plates inside but a futile attempt at getting them cleaned. It looked like she was stacking a cabinet not a dish washer.

"I'm just finishing up the dishes. Mom insisted I start getting house-trained. Did you know Alec made breakfast this morning? He made mom's blueberry pancakes. _Mom's blueberry pancakes!_ The ones I've been trying to make since we were twelve. He got it on the first try. THE FIRST TRY! Even he's a better cook than me and I'm the daughter in the family! Now, I'm stuck on dish-duty." she complained. "Doing the dishes is the only thing they trust me to do in the kitchen."

Simon rushed to her side, spooning her from behind while squatting. It was hell for his legs but she was worth it. He perched his head on her shoulder and murmured in her ear. "You aren't that bad Izzy. You are just meant for different things, that's all. Who believes in gender stereotypes nowadays anyway? I've got the most beautiful female assassin in the world who can whoop demon ass like it was nobody's goddamn business. If she can't cook or clean, it shouldn't matter. We're still young. If you insist, I can save some money and enrol us in those mundane cooking schools." He decided, right there, that he would forego telling her about the dishes and fix them right-side down later instead.

She sighed, shifting her weight onto him with a small smile playing on her lips. "Mundane, says the mundane." she teased, feeling instantly lighter as Simon's words washed over her like a cool breeze. She reached behind to touch his cheek with her damp fingers. She twisted her head, just enough to face him and gave him a light peck on the nose. She was as passionate as she was fierce, something that Simon loved greatly about her. With a push, she closed the dishwasher door and it clicked.

"Not so mundane anymore, actually." replied Simon as he nuzzled her neck. "I've been one of Raziel's Children for months now. So _that's_ how you feel when you call the ordinary humans as mundane. It's strange. It's like I can taste the superiority in my mouth when I say it. No wonder Alec and Jace take every chance to call me that even though it's not true anymore."

Isabelle turned her upper body this time and punched him lightly on the arm. "Don't be a sour grape. You know mundane is some sort of endearment for you. So it daylighter, lightwalker, fangs, Child of Cain, but they like saying mundane the most. After all, you _were_ the first mundane to step inside the Institute for over a hundred years!" she said laughing.

Simon shook his head and stood up, offering a hand to Isabelle. She took it appreciatively, heaving herself from the floor and using his weight as leverage. Both of them brushed the imaginary dirt of their clothes. "Where to, my Lady?" he asked, like a perfect gentleman he offered her his arm. She wrapped a hand around his elbow and drew herself closer.

"To the library, dear Queen Mother requests our presence" she replied, playing along like a lovesick nerd. If she had big round-framed glasses, she would have passed off for one. Simon shook his head, no this was perfect as it is. "Come, Warlock Super-Cool-Underlord93"

"Actually, it's _Mage_ -Super-Cool-Underlord93" Isabelle laughed out loud. There was a reason Simon picked the absurd nickname. It was worth it.

***

Alec sat on the windowsill, nose buried in a book while he waited for his mother. Maryse had excused herself to freshen up, probably a bath and a change of clothes. Jace brought Liam along to pick-up Clary. Apparently, the red-head had told Luke and Jocelyn about what had happened in Alicante yesterday. The Garroways were eager to meet the mystery boy. Because Liam was still young, they had to go without glamour. He was apprehensive at first, threatened his own parabatai with the force of a great typhoon before he finally succumbed to his son's pleading green eyes.

He sighed, flipping through the Shadowhunter records. It was an old leather bound book fitted with protection spells. It rested heavy on his legs. On it, were all the born Shadowhunters that were recorded in history, it went as far as Jonathan Shadowhunter, the very first Nephilim. He could trace his heritage all the way from the past to the present. All the Nephilim names were recorded with the date of birth in dark black ink.

Several things could happen to [a Shadowhunter’s] name: a cross appears beside their name when Nephilim die, it is struck-through when the Nephilim is stripped of their marks, and sometimes it fades into a light grey if the Nephilim did something dishonourable. He had seen the cross several times, on his grandparent’s names and Max Lightwood's. The faded names, he saw it on Valentine and Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern's names. However, he seen a name struck-through one before and shuddered at the memory.

"Alexander" he looked up upon hearing his mother's voice. "We need to talk." There was a chilling seriousness in it that made him shiver. He tucked the book back into the shelf and hastily ran down the curved stairs. She took a seat behind the large carved oak-wood table and clasped her fingers, elbows gracefully resting on the table. She was in a crisp blue dress-shirt that ruffled in front, a belt accenting her waist and a long black skirt. He heard the click of her heels when she walked.

"Take a seat" she gestured on the chair in front of her desk. He obediently obeyed without hesitation, taking the chair to her left.

"It this about the portals?" he inquired stiffly. Something about his mother's knowing blue-eyes told him that it was unlikely but he tried anyway. "Is it about Liam? Because honestly, even Magnus is confounded by the situation. It--it's--" he stuttered, blushing. "--a miracle, really."

Maryse groaned and buried her face in her hands. It had been the first time this morning that she had lost her cool and calm composure. "I knew I should have asked Robert to talk to you a long time ago. Stupid, stupid man." she whispered into her palms. Alec did not hear her properly.

"Mom?"

With a deep breath, she lifted her face and looked straight into Alec's eyes. "Alexander, when a man and a woman love each other very much--"

"Oh no!" cried Alec, blushing to his ears and flailing both his hands in front of him. "Please not the birds and the bees talk, mom. Or the bagel and sausage, or the banana and bread, or whatever sort of euphemism for sex-talk that you can think of. Magnus cannot get sick and he's clean. I'm clean. I mean seriously, _mom_ " he whined, hiding his face in his arms "Dad already gave me this lecture before I moved out of the Institute!"

Maryse just lifted her eyebrow. He knew what she meant instantly. "Says the child who gave me my first grandchild" she mused. "I suppose this is that part where you tell me you don't use condoms."

Alec paled. "N--no. I don't like it." he confessed. His felt the heat up to his ears now. Did he just confess to liking bare backing to his mother?! This, right here, has got to be the most awkward conversation he has ever had with his mother. All his father asked was if the warlock was STD-free, knowing what happened to dear-old-ancestor Benedict Lightwood. He asked his boyfriend to get checked the same night. "It's not like I can get knocked-up!"

"Apparently you do in the future. I can't say that I blame you I mean, Liam is such an adorable child. He reminds me of you when you were that age" she said with a chuckle. "Maybe I should give your siblings the talk as well? The angel know that they aren't as pure as chaste as they look."

"Mom!" he gasped. Thank angels that the door opened before she could say anything else.

"We'll continue this another time, Alec." she said before turning to the pair who entered the room.

Isabelle and Simon had continued their nerd-speak all the way to the library, covering pop-culture icons from Star Wars to Doctor Who to the Avengers. Sometimes, Isabelle made parallelisms with real demons so Simon could picture it better in his head. She was pretty descriptive about it too. At the moment, there were in a heated debate about the similarities and differences between a Behemoth Demon and Jabba the Hutt.

"But Jabba doesn't have slime! It's just his fatty residue." Simon's voice echoed the library. For this he got curious looks from Alec and Maryse. "Hi" he quipped, suddenly embarrassed at the reference to sc-fi movies. Clearly, the mother and son pair had no clue what he was talking about. "Uhm, it's from the movie Star Wars? You know Jedi Knights, the Sith, Storm troopers? Uhuh. Why don't we just get back to what you called us in for, Maryse."

"Very well" she nodded. "What is taking Jace and Liam so long?" she asked to no one in particular. It was the first time that Simon realized that they were not in the room.

"Oh yeah. Where are they?"

"They went to pick up Clary." Isabelle supplied. She didn't wait for him, she had already taken a seat around the large oval table which displayed the map of the world. This map was different than mundane maps, because it had Alicante right in the centre. There were several red dots on it, each symbolising an Institute of the Clave. The New York Institute has a triangle, meaning that it was where they were located.

As if on cue, a small light glowed from the library entrance. It was the beginning of a portal comparable to the one they had seen in Alicante, except it glowed pale white instead of green. The light stretched wider and wider, forming into an expansive circle that covered the library's large doors. Behind it--or beyond it was more appropriate--stood three figures: two adults and one child. One of the figures crouched down and reached for them. A hand passed through the portal, a small hand with long delicate fingers: it was Clary!

Jace, Clary, and Liam passed through the portal simultaneously. Remnants of the portal stuck to them in rivets of semi-sticky water which dripped to the floors in big droplets. Liam sprinted back to his father at once, squealing as he told Alec about Aunt Clary's amazing portal skills. "You two are cleaning that mess up" Maryse said with emotion. She had long gotten used to Clary portaling in and out of the Institute, It saved them a whole lot of time when one of the Shadowhunters was injured. Although she was thankful that it saved the lives of her children several times, she did not appreciate the chaos it made on her floors. The pair nervously nodded.

"I hope you both aren't water-clogged from the journey" She drawled in the same clipped tone, glancing back at the ancient grandfather clock against the wall. "You have exactly five minute to change into something dry or that will be five hundred curl-ups this afternoon _before_ you go on patrol." Clary paled immediately while Jace simply smiled cockily and bolted out of the room. "That means you too, Fray, and do tell him to get my grandson a change of clothes." she said coolly.

"Liam, you're freezing!" Alec exclaimed when their hands touched. He ran his hands over his son's damp black hair, flicking away the excess water, then tugged both the jacket and the turtleneck off. He piled all of the discarded clothes on the floor beside him. He shrugged his hoodie of without further thought and rolled it over the boy's lithe frame. The remaining damp clothes came off next. Maryse offered her chair. Alec smiled in response. He settled both of them near the fireplace, hugging the boy close and sharing as much of his body heat as possible.

"Warm daddy" Liam sighed, leaning back against him.

Alec smiled more warmly, tucking the small child further into his chest and sharing his heat. He could feel Liam's temperature gradually rising back to normal and finally the worry in his chest began to subside. It reminded him of how concerned he was for his siblings except [that this time] it was multiplied twice over, triggering a protective side of him he had not realized[he had]. He wanted to protect this boy, love him, and shower him with all the affection he finally learned to show.

Jace and Clary jogged in, looking like they had just run the Boston Marathon. Technically, they might as well have been given that the Institute was so large and the library was further away from the residential wing. Clary looked like she was hit by a tornado, red fiery hair messier than usual. She had thrown on a pair of jeans and a pink shirt which was worn inside-out. Alec wished he could say the same for Jace who looked immaculately dressed as ever in a cashmere shirt and grey jeans with his hair perfectly styled back. He walked over to his parabatai.

"I got him Max's short, but it'll look like a pair of baggy pyjamas on him." Jace told him with a sad smile. Remembering Max pained them both. It was said quietly enough not to reach Isabelle or Maryse's ears. He passed the shorts and the shirt over to Alec and walked back towards the oval table.

"Thanks" The man replied, reaching for the clothes. "Liam" he cooed to his son. "Daddy's going to change your clothes okay?" Liam let out a sleepy whine in protest but otherwise did not move. 

"Sweepy daddy" he mumbled, refusing to lift his arms. But Alec was firm and eventually persuaded the child to comply and get changed. After everything was done, he rolled the hoodie once more over Liam and let the boy fall asleep in his arms.

Maryse had gathered the rest of the Shadowhunters around the large oval table. Jace had already taken a seat beside her.

"Any other portals freezing over in the last 24-hrs?" Alec was the first to ask the question, acting like the tough Shadowhunter he was trained to be, despite being the farthest away from the group. There was no more trace of the father-figure he had exuded moments ago with Liam. It was Big Brother Alec now.

To answer his question, Maryse pointed to several Institutes marked with push-pins. "Beijing froze at 2am this morning. I got the message from the Clave when I woke up. So far, no other Institute has reported the anomaly with their portals."

"That makes it five portals. When did it start happening?" inquired Jace. He had a strong, calculating look on his face. Maryse had to take a breath, he reminded her of Valentine sometimes when he was serious.

"According to Consul Penhallow, it started with the Lisbon Institute. The Senyor Monteverde sent her a fire message claiming that there was something wrong with their portal. The Consul sent over the High Warlock of London but even he was astounded by the phenomenon."

"Is there anything else? Did anything happen before or after it froze?" Clary asked. "We all saw Helen back in Alicante. She was badly injured. She said there was something following her inside the portal."

Maryse shook her head. "From the reports of Lisbon, Edinburg, Cluj, LA, and now Beijing, only LA and the Blackthorns experienced a flare. The rest of the Institute portals closed froze without further incident."

"Where are Helen and the Blackthorns now?" Isabelle finally quipped.

"They're all staying in Idris for the time being. Until the Consul clears the Los Angeles Institute and declares it safe again."

"What about Beijing?" Jace added.

"Elise Verlac refuses to leave the Beijing Institute unguarded." Maryse swayed her head. She admitted to herself that it was a dangerous choice.

"Any signs of demonic energy?" Alec cut in while jolting down notes.

"None in any of the portals. Tessa Gray, High Warlock of Los Angeles, took the Consul there personally this morning to further investigate. She is one of the warlocks on the case, along with Ragnor Fell. They will be working with the Clave and helping in gathering information."

"What about Magnus?" Surprising enough, the question did not come from Alec. Instead, it was posited by Simon.

"The Consul and Inquisitor are leading the investigation of the Clave. They have yet to ask for the High Warlock of Brooklyn. He will not be brought in to help without their request." she replied. The mention of the _inquisitor_ , told them more than they needed to know. Robert would never turn to Magnus for help. Unlike Maryse, he has seen very little of Magnus' true value in protecting the NY Institute. Hell would freeze-over before he asked help from his son's boyfriend. "Despite my recommendations"

"It's fine." Alec cut in before Simon could say any more. "He's busy doing other things." his tone clearly indicating that it was the end of this conversation. Simon said nothing more and let it go. "What are our instructions?"

"The Clave has ordered the rest of the unaffected Institutes to proceed business as usual. All six of you will retain your patrols around the area for any signs of heightened demonic activity. There are no reports nor sightings which need to be addressed for the time being. For now, all of you to the training room, I want to see body conditioning by this afternoon. Jace and Isabelle, switch partners. Alec, I want the advance stamina and toning regimen."

"What about Liam?" Clary piped up, noticing the worry in Alec's face.

Maryse just gave them all a smile. "Leave my grandson to me. It's been a while since I took care of a child." Despite the coldness in her voice, Alec couldn't help but felt the warmth building in his chest.

 


	5. Chapter 5

It was hotter now; the mid-morning commute on the train made him feel feverish as hot bodies pressed against him uncomfortably. He left the subway feeling sweaty and gross. He snapped away his jacket to the hamper back in his loft. Now he trekked back to his building in just his black wife beater. He did, however, choose to keep the scarf for fashionable reasons. He opened the door with a snap and made his way up the rickety steps to his 'penthouse'. There was already someone waiting at his door.

He reached back and plucked the mobile from his back pocket. It read: 9:45am. He was fifteen minutes early but his client was earlier. He cursed, he hated early people as much as he hated late people. They just gave no respect for someone else's time. It was like their own personal body clock was supposed to be followed by everyone around them. He felt no inclination to speed up.

"Magnus" a familiar female voice greeted him. Okay, he paused, that was definitely not his ten o-clock. If he remembered correctly, his memory was impeccable by the way, his first appointment of the day was supposed be a mundane man who hired him to make fake Harvard diplomas, complete with all the necessary coursework just in-case anybody questioned the legitimacy of the document. He never understood why such a simple piece of paper mattered so much to mundanes.

"Ahh, Catarina." he greeted with a Cheshire smile, finally confirming his suspicions when she came into his full-view.  She was still under a glamour, hiding her unique blue complexion and white tresses. She was dressed in a pale yellow dress that was decorated with big sunflowers and a pair of dainty red-flats. If only she were her natural shade, she would have perfected the all-primary-colours look. At the moment she looked like an African woman with odd European features.

"What brings you to my humble abode?" he quipped, pretending to curtsy in jest. He was rewarded by her big smile and offered him her hand like a chaste damsel.

"Are you not going to invite me in?" She countered instead of replying to his question.

"Ah yes, where are my manners?" jested Magnus. "Welcome to La Casa Bane! Mi casa is tu casa, and apparently the casa of everyone in Brooklyn."

Catarina laughed along. Her first course of action was to greet Chairman Meow who came cantering from the kitchen. She stroked behind his ears before picking him up. She let her glamour fall away to reveal her dark blue skin and long white hair. "At least someone's happy to see me" she murmured against his fluffy ears as she took seat. "Aren't you Chairman Meow? Oh my god! You're the most obese cat in the world!"

"Chairman Meow is not obese!" Magnus shot back indignantly. "He's just--" he took one look at the ball of white fur which was otherwise known as The Chairman and quickly gave up. "--okay, he's a little on the heavy side."

Catarina merely rolled her eyes.

"Yes, yes. He's humungous. Now stop it, you'll hurt the Chairman's feelings!" he said, casting a pitying expression over[to] his fat cat. "Alexander happens to like feeding the Chairman. He eats three times a day now." he huffed as he slumped on the sofa beside her. "So, what _does_ bring you to my humble  abode? With your complaining about your self-imposed busy schedule in the hospital lately, I’ll hardly  believe that this is but  a simple social call. You could have texted if you were bored, you know? Or did your line get cut again?"

"It's not my problem that the phone company refuses to send the bills to the hospital instead of my house!" she exasperated. "How can they expect me to pay my bills when I only go home once in a blue moon?"

"Only when the moon is as blue as you, darling" Magnus couldn't resist a good pun. She hit him on the arm for it and he cringed. "But please, do continue with your story. Pay no heed to the door if it rings, it's just my ten o-clock mundane client." he continued and two identical cups of tea appeared  from the Mudd Truck with a wave of hand. He graciously offered her a cup.

She took it gratefully. The Chairman left his lumpy perch and settled for the space between them. "Ah yes, I think your precious little Shadowhunter may have cheated on you."

Magnus, who had already taken a good sip, spat out his tea like a disgusting geyser with hints of blueberry. "I’m sorry, come again? ?" he demanded, his cat-like eyes blown wide in disbelief. "Alexander would never cheat on me!" he contended.

Catarina scoffed into her tea. She was not smiling any more. "Jocelyn's daughter and the blonde boy, you know the one, the one who can't figure out which family name to register into anymore. Well, I saw them walking on my way home. They had a kid, Magnus, a small kid that looks exactly like your precious little Shadowhunter."

"Oh. Him." Magnus murmured into his tea, realizing who she was referring to. His smile never failing, "He's mine."

Instead of spitting out her tea, Catarina Loss went all the way and let her paper cup fall onto the floor. _Tea_ spilled out, staining the floor in reddish-brown liquid that seeped into the wood.

"Wait, the shoes!" Magnus yelled, instinctively lifting his legs a fraction of a second before the liquid touched his Pregamo leather boots. "They're expensive!" he scolded. He vanished the offending liquid with a snap of his fingers and refused to summon her a second cup. At least, not until they finished their conversation. Catarina opened her mouth to defend herself but the doorbell rang before she could say anything.

"Oh, that must be Mr.Dursley!" Magnus announced gleefully, standing up and reaching for a brown paper envelop on the coffee table. He briefly looked back at her and said "I'll be very quick darling. Can't keep customers who are willing to pay an absurd amount of cash waiting!" Good thing he had decided to make the papers yesterday when he was waiting for Alec. Look at all that time he saved up! This has got to be one of the easiest cash pay-outs he's had in _centuries_. He was  back in less than five minutes with a big smile on his face and a wad of cash in his hand.

"Now, my darling Catarina, as I was saying" he spoke, sprawling back on the couch and merely missing Chairman Meow's tail by an inch. The feline was not pleased. The Chairman jumped off the couch disappeared further into the apartment. "--the child is mine. Actually, he’s Alec's and mine. He has my warlock marks: gold-green eyes with slits like a cat but he has a bellybutton though." he explained slowly and calmly, allowing her to absorb his words and process them.

"Since when?" she managed to say "He looks so big! Judging from his side, he's about two or three. You and Alec, have been together for  roughly the same amount of time."

"We are going on four, actually. He came from the future."                                             

Catarina was sceptical. "You're not on fairy drugs, are you?" she questioned, leaning in to study him with her eyes. She pressed her blue hand to his forehead and felt that his temperature was nothing beyond average. Magnus just shook his head. She kept on looking anyway until she was satisfied that he was clean. "Okay, pretend that I believe you, continue."

"His name is Liam. I think his whole name is William Maxwell Lightwood but I'm not really sure yet. He's still a bit too young to ask. Our son, according to Alec, dropped out of the sky. I suspect it was from a portal. Have you ever heard of a portal capable of time travel? I haven't and I've lived for nine hundred years! I've sent people, across the globe and into Idris, with nothing sort of pure brilliance and my impeccable heritage, but never through a different point in time. That would take an extremely large amount of power, that amount of power could even kill the warlock casting it."

Catarina lifted her hand, signally for him to keep quiet which he did sourly. "First off, you’ve change your age on a daily basis from the day we first met, that was two hundred years ago, which is why I tend to be sceptical about what you say. Second, you have a SON. Magnus, how can you be so preoccupied with portals and time travel when you have an actual real-life son. You should be racking through your books to find out how that’s even possible! You.Are.A.Warlock. We are barren! Barren! Scientifically, if that even applied us, we cannot have children because of our cross-breeding. Not to mention you have a Nephilim boyfriend. I'll say it again: boyfriend--male with testes and lacking a womb. Did all of that never cross your mind? How do you explain all that?"

"Surrogate?" Magnus replied meekly, looking younger and more innocent that she had ever seen him.

The female groaned and pressed her head against the back of the couch.  "By Lilith, Magnus Bane. You need to be more concerned about the proper answers. How does that, in any way, except in your delusional world, explain why he looks so much like you? Surrogacy works with a single sperm donor, which Alec can supply, but you?" she made it clear "your swimmers are not supposed to be potent. Why do you have a child walking around with your marks? Don't tell me your father knocked-up his sister and you both adopted the kid in the future to save her from shame?"

Magnus nearly doubled-over at the thought. "Lilith forbid it." he cursed. "There has to be a different explanation." He appeared sullen for a few minutes, burning holes into his rugs while he thought. Catarina could almost see the light blue smoke forming on the mink. Then, like a light bulb, an idea sparked in his mind and she saw it instantly. He glanced over to Catarina, giving her a look that she knew meant awas a very, very bad idea. Like going-to-Peru-and-getting-banned bad.

"Oh no. No, Magnus. Do you hear me? I refuse to partake in any of your schemes!" She cried, widening the space between them while shaking her head wildly. With every inch she moved back, he merely inched closer. He had that smile, that smirk which made her afraid, very afraid. "No" she repeated firmly until she felt the arm of the couch digging onto her back. "Magnus Bane, I am not doing it. You have called all of your dating favours for this century! I perfectly remember telling you that during your first date with the Nephilim. Still no."

"But Catarina! You're the bestes-best-girl-friend that I have in the whole wide world." He clasped his hands over his chest, tucking it beneath his lowered chin, and gave her his best puppy-dog expression he could muster with his feline eyes. "Plus you work in a mundane hospital as a nurse. You should be able to help me solve this one." He added stubbornly.

"Magnus, being a nurse and having to figure out how you magically knocked-up your boyfriend are two completely different things! For one, Mundanes have science and medicine. Second, Warlocks have spell books and potions. They aren't, even in any metaphorical sense, the same thing! You could ask Ragnor." she tried, desperately.

He frowned at her, leaning back on the couch and hoisting his arms over the cushioned back. "You and I both know he will laugh it off. That's how he is. Plus, he still isn't very fond of Alec just because he’s a Nephilim. I doubt that he ever will. Damn him and his Downworlder biases."

"Maybe you can show him a picture of Liam and he'll come around." She suggested with earnest.

"Ragnor hates children. He prefers older women with lots of money that can coo over his greenish complexion." Then he switched tactic. "Come on, treat it like an adventure! Don't you want to be the first warlock to unlock the secrets of our sterility? You would be famous. Better yet, you could be RICH! We could be rich! Oh Catarina think of the possibilities. We will never have to sell our magic, our work for the rest of our lives if we figure this out."

"The last time I had a 'great adventure' with you, we got banned from Peru. Thank you very much but I am not eager for an encore performance." She pointed out defiantly and crossed her arms. "Plus, you'll get bored without a job. You might start thinking about being a pirate again or something. I love being a nurse, I wouldn't want to stop being one."

Magnus unwound her arms and took one hand in each of his. He looked carefully into her warm blue eyes. "Then think about all those you can help with the extra money. You can finally open the free health clinic that you wanted which serve both magical and non-magical folk. Isn't that what you always wanted?"

Catarina took a deep breath and thought about it. Finally, she sighed a long heavy sigh and nodded. "I'm not doing this for you. I'm doing this for all the impoverished Downworlders that can‘t afford the proper medical attention. That, and you are officially taking over council duties until further notice." 

"Yes!" He squealed, dragging her up by the arms and pulling her into his study. Council duties was a small price to pay to see Alec's fatherly smile cooing over Liam. "Come on, we've got work to do!"

***

Advance stamina and toning is just as excruciating as it sounds. Stamina consisted of squat jumps, burpees, lateral jumps, jumping lunges, agility dots, and mountain climbers--all done with regulated weights which weighed proximately ten percent of their body weight. The weights were strapped to their torso, their legs, and their ankles. Meanwhile their toning regimen which comprised of stretches, crunches, planking, and mini-feats of acrobatics. The ab-crunches were the worst which were done in three different positions; prone, incline prone, and vertical.

"Oh my god. I can't take this anymore!" Clary moaned as she finished up the last of her vertical lunges. The rest of her team were already drinking water below her as she hung from the ceiling.

"Come on, babe, just a few more and we can hoist you down." Jace called up in response. He was below her, giving her one of most angelically handsome smiles he could muster. He was sweating profusely like all of them but somehow he managed to look ethereal and utterly gorgeous under the high-noon sunlight streaming through the window. His hair plastered on his face, with beads of salty sweat rolling down his neck.

"Stop ogling Fray, and finish your repetitions!" Simon shouted in jest from the back of the room. He completed his reps only a few minutes before and was wiping himself down. The comment earned him a face full of Jace's dark sweaty towel. "Eww gross! Herondale germs" he cried, flinging the offending piece of cloth as far away from his as possible. He made a disgusted face like he was faking a hurl.

"I'm blessing you with my angelic sweat, mundane. Be grateful!" Jace shot back, laughing.

"Ugrh boys!" Isabelle groaned, taking a spot beside her brother on the benches. Like always she was near pristine. The only remnant of her rigorous training, peaking from the wisps of hair falling from her bun. "Why can't they just admit their having a- _who's-got-the-bigger-dig_ -game? All that testosterone, it's disgusting."

From beside her, Alec just chuckled. "It got worse when Simon ascended. Now Jace has to constantly remind every single person that he's the _best damn Shadowhunter_ since Jonathan Shadowhunter himself. Haha." He wiped a bit of sweat off his forehead and slung the towel on the back of his neck. "Man, my muscles are sore and we still have weapon drills this afternoon." He leaned on his arms, arching his back and pinched together his shoulder blades. He donned a plain black sleeveless shirts and sweats. He kept most of his training clothes in the Institute.

"So, do you want to talk about it?" Isabelle cut in, straightforward as always. Alec just gave her a questioning look as a reply. "Magnus, Liam, You? The fact that you're going to be a father, a real life biological father, in the future? Doesn't it freak you out even a little bit?"

Alec sighed, drawing his elbows to lean against his knees. He closed his hands in a loose fist and tucked it under his chin. "Yeah, still freaking out but getting used to it." he answered quietly. "It's very strange. Four years ago, I had to come to grips with the fact that I'm dating an immortal warlock. Then, I had to face the fact that we could never have children. Then, this happens. It's like when life gives you lemons, you have to make lemonade? But life is like _'_ I want pink lemonade not yellow lemonade' so you're kind of---fucked."

The last word made Isabelle laugh: prim and proper Alec cursing and stuff. There was a first for everything! "So Liam? Do you have any idea..? Are you guys trying?"

"We haven't really talked about children. It's not something you get to think about when you put your life on the line more times than you can count." he said, bringing a his hands over his face and dragging them down. "Especially not when you're just twenty-two and gay."

"But your boyfriend loves you..."

"Exactly my point. He's my _boyfriend_ , Izzy. I can't even marry him properly, not with the Clave's stupid rules. Is it so, uh, _traditional_ to want marriage before we talk about children?" He groaned into his hands, long and tired. The stamina routine was enough to dissipate some of his emotional weariness but not all of it. Now he felt doubly-exhausted. "Being a Shadowhunter, it's not--it's not safe. I mean we're so young."

"Hey! Mom had you when she was twenty." Isabelle pointed out.

"We're a whole different generation, Iz. Kids our age, normal non-Nephilim kids, think about kids maybe when they’re in their thirties or something. I mean..." The realization dawned on him suddenly. "Don't tell me… are you?"

"Oh angel no!" Isabelle shot back. "I'm not pregnant or anything. But we have, Simon and I, talked about getting married and having children in the near future. He's just working up his courage to make it official and risk a bloody nose by asking the Inquisitor for his daughter’s hand in marriage. Yes, some of us Lightwoods are still traditional like you." But she shrugged as she motioned over to the couple near the parallel bars.

Alec caught on with what she was implying. "Nah, I've seen the condoms in Jace's rooms."

"Yeah but never in the trash! What are those, for display? Plus there's all the inappropriate ogling and sexual innuendos on missions. I doubt that they keep their – _ahem-_ bedroom exercises strictly in the bedroom." She said shamelessly. Yes, she was discussing her adopted brother's sex-life with her real brother. Yes, the same one with the weird _I-thought-I-loved-you_ ordeal from the past. No, she was not embarrassed by it. However, her brother was.

"Yeah, well, you and Simon just make sure, you know... you're safe." he ended, ducking out of the conversation to pull Simon towards the archery area. Isabelle followed him without a word and took her whips for a round of practice. Suspiciously but unsurprising, Clary and Jace miraculously disappeared.

Half an hour and a hundred bows later, all five of them were exhausted and sweaty. Jace and Clary appeared a few minutes after they began their weapon sets and began practicing with seraph blades. By that time, Alec had mutilated a target, Simon had hit his third bulls-eyes, Isabelle dangled on the ceiling testing her whip’s strength, Jace had a bloody cheek, and Clary got half-an inch shorter bangs.

"Daddy!" A gleeful scream turned their attention towards the door. Liam charged in, wailing like a banshee as he ran straight for Alec's legs. Alec caught him instinctively, lowering his bow and discarding his weapons to avoid accidental injuries. Maryse was not far behind, entering the room with practiced stealth. "Nana make pigeon!" he declared happily, beaming up to Alec with a side crooked smile. "I help! Rub pigeon good with lotsa butter!"

"You helped Nana cook? That's wonderful!" he praised, ruffling the familiar ebony locks that were similar to his own. Liam's ecstatic expression made him melt like butter. He was going soft, he was going to be a soft father. "Is it time to eat?" the boy nodded. "Okay, go back to Nana first. Daddy is sweaty and needs to change. Then let's eat the pigeon Nana made, ok?" Alec looked up, to find Maryse only steps away.

"It's not pigeon. I made chicken but the child persists on calling the bird a pigeon." She stated with a warm expression. "How was training?"

"Killer" Jace replied, skipping by them.

"We did three sets" Isabelle added.

"We did sixteen repetitions each" Clary mumbled, nursing her thighs.

"I'll go set the dishes." Simon piped up. The odd interjection caused everyone to turn to him. "I like dishes, it's my thing. I'll head to the kitchen first and set the table. Then we can eat your delicious cooking, Mrs. Lightwood" he said, passing all six of them and slipped through the door without another word. Safe, now to fix the disaster in the dishwasher that he let Isabelle do.

Maryse just blinked after him.

"Is he for real?" Jace drawled, wide-eyed. "Did he seriously try to impress mom or something?" he asked, looking around the group in hopes of some answers.

"Did it work?" Clary piped aimed at Maryse.

"I care little for housework, but I care more for my daughter. Keeping her safe, that works." She answered without missing a beat. "Clean up and take your showers after lunch. Then you're off to patrols for this afternoon." she directed. Then she lowered herself to eye-level with her grandson. "You want to help Nana make pie for later?" Liam nodded enthusiastically.

"Now that's not fair!" Isabelle complained lightly. "Even my adorable nephew has kitchen duty now."

Alec placed a hand on her shoulder and grinned. "He gets it from his dad" he said and promptly received a hard punch on the shoulder.

 


	6. Chapter 6

The NY team was sent to the Bronx after lunch. The five adult Shadowhunters were dressed in full-gear, and had already applied their glamour runes. As they left, they couldn’t help but smile at the bubbly boy that waved at them from beside Maryse. She didn’t normally see them to the door but today she had with her grandson by her hip. 

Patrol should have been easy. They had gone on patrol several times as a complete unit now with both Clary and Simon. It had taken them a few tries before they had managed to pin their chemistry down to the tree that enabled them to work well together. Jace, of course, was the leader. Alec and Simon were the strategists, and Isabelle and Clary were the indispensible muscle, believe it or not. With decent training the mundane-turned-Shadowhunters proved to be efficient in the field. Patrols were routine, almost like clockwork, in theory. However, it consistently proved to be the complete opposite on the field.

"CLAAARY! Do it now!" Jace yelled with the ferociousness of a lion, his eyes ablaze with angelic fury. They were in the middle of a fight with an Iblis demon. Iblis were nasty demons that were considered to be one of the hardest to kill. They were corporeal beings who did not have a true shape, instead their form was composed of dark shadowy smoke and a pair of haunting yellow eyes. Other Nephilim called Iblis demons as _the devil's whisper_ but Jace thought more of _the devil's very bad morning breath_. _Eww_ that smell was disgusting. This made the conventional Shadowhunter weaponry utterly useless.

On Jace's command, Clary finished her newest symbol--on the ground: _confine_. It looked like an ancient mark which was draw in successions forming a circle. There were eight confine runes in total, one in the middle with seven around it. The runes were connected with straight lines, creating a circle that joined each outer rune with the middle one. As she finished the last line, a pinkish glow began to ebb from the middle. It engulfed the Ibis demon in soft light until a sphere appeared in the middle. It looked like a pink marble with a black airy centre.

"So that's what an Iblis demon looks like in the mundane world" Alec mused, staring at the angelic sphere Clary had made. He had dealt with Iblis demons before back in Idris, but they had had a more solid form there, and he had never seen their form in the mundane world before. The creature inside appeared to be flailing about in rapid succession, with the eyes jolting erratically in random directions.  It was strange, peering up at the creature, its yellow-eyes looked like they were peering into the flames of hell. They sparked and burned. It was frightening enough that a trail of goosebumps rose on their skins.

"This is the first time I've encountered an Iblis demon" Isabelle noted from beside him. She was only a bit dirty from being thrown around and hitting a dusty wall. She had traces of grey stains on her cheekbones. Otherwise, she was relatively clean. It had been the first and last attack she was hit with. She had crouched on the ground for a better part of the battle, unsure of how to engage. That was a first for her and she did not like it. She didn’t like feeling useless.

Simon was beside her, nursing a shoulder. He caught her mid-flight and cushioned her from the wall, as a result, he hit his shoulder pretty bad. He had hit it hard enough to hear a sickening crunch coming from his shoulder when he crashed against the wall rendering his right arm useless as it limped against his side, immobile.

"Damn it. Not again" he muttered under his breath feeling the numbness there. By now, he was sort of used to the immeasurable amounts of pain from being broken and re-broken after several missions. "Not another bone. Mom is going to kill me when she catches me with another _biking accident_ this week!" he groaned and cursed again when white hot pain shot up his arm.  He cussed behind gritted teeth, a failed attempt to hide how badly his arm was doing. Isabelle shot him a knowing look and read through the ill-attempted humour.

"Come here" demanded Isabelle, sounding more commanding than concerned. Simon understood that it was her way of masking her guilt over his injuries. She, along with Clary, were the reason for his decision to learn Shadowhunting in the first place. They were familiar, even without all of his memories, they were his haven, especially Isabelle Lightwood's dark chocolate brown eyes. It felt like coming home. He cringed but allowed her to look over him.

"That's an Iblis, right?" he asked, distracting himself from the sting of Isabelle's steel. An _Iratze_ wasn't enough to heal bone. They would have to get Maryse to snap back the dislocated shoulder and hard-cast where the bones were broken, or maybe Alec because he was slightly better at healing than the rest of the team. "I mean, that's how and Iblis looks like. Black and fuzzy and a body made of smoke. What a smokin' bod'" he jested.

Clary could not help but chortle from where she stood. "You've got a bloody arm and still have a sense of humour." she said while smiling and shaking her head. Jace was doing the same thing as Isabelle was doing on Simon; he was checking her for injuries. There was nothing but a few scratches on her hands. She hadn’t really fought much physically as she did fighting through making runes. "I'm fine" she told him. "Go check on Alec"

Alec was in a similar state as Jace. He just had a bit of a bloody forehead but was otherwise unharmed. His bow was draped over his body like a second armour and the quiver behind him had barely been touched. Weaponry proved useless for this type of demon, the pair were the quickest ones to figure that out. They had resorted to setting up a trap instead. Jace played as bait, luring the demon until it concentrated on him alone.  It gave Alec enough time to think of a way to capture it. Clary had been the finishing touches.

"It's u-gly with a capital U" Jace commented plain as day, even boasting so much that he flexed his arms behind his head. "No wonder demons are uptight pieces of feces. I would be too if I looked like that."

Alec snorted at his parabatai in response.

"Urgh" Isabelle groused with disgust. "It smells _horrible_. How could we miss that? It smells like, ugrh, I can't even describe how it smells like."

"It smells like Edom" Simon supplied for her, surprising everyone including himself. Once more, everyone turned to him in speculation.

"Edom does not smell like that. It was vile but not _this_ vile." Jace retorted.

Simon was taken back. As far as he could remember, he had never been to Edom. That was the old Simon Lewis, the one who died and came back from the dead. That was not him. He shook his head. "I--I don't know how. I just do." It was Alec who stepped up beside him.

"Leave it alone, Jace." he spoke with a light air of authority that even Jace backed down. "It's done. It's over. Now, let's figure out how we can send that thing back to the dimension where it belongs. Away from here." he said with gritted teeth. They all nodded, pushing back the conversation behind them.

Two hours later, they were still stuck behind a building along Paulding Avenue no better than before. They had tried everything, from fire to oxygen deprivation, to shrinking the sphere until the demon was crushed but to no avail. The Iblis demon's immaterial body adapted to the environment making it all the more harder to kill. Towards the end, Clary was exhausted. She had been the one to try out all the runes but nothing had worked.

"But why is it here?" Isabelle asked, voicing the question on everyone's mind. "It's not supposed to be here."

"Why _can't_ it be here?" Simon retorted back.

"Because Iblis are part magic. This world is not supposed to have magic." Jace explained like he was talking to a one-year old, expression complete with a smug eye-roll.

"That's not in the Codex!" Simon shot back, a bit annoyed. "It's not like the Codex is a hundred percent complete or accurate. It's at eighty percent at most." he mumbled under his breath. "Stupid Nephilim rules and horrible record keeping abilities."

"Cut it out, you guys. Clary's nearly falling off her feet. Stop fighting!" Isabelle scolded from behind them. Alec was the first one to react. He strode over and gently rubbed Clary's shoulder.

"We can't kill it. Do you have enough energy to move that sphere all the way back to the Institute? We can portal there if you still can manage. It would be faster than the subway." Alec asked, genuinely concerned over her weariness. At times like this, the rest of them wished to have Clary's rune-control so they could help her. But alas, every gift had a blessing and a curse. She had to do this alone.

Clary shook her head weakly. "I don't think I can manage another portal right now but I can contain that blasted sphere until we reach the Manhattan." Her voice was soft, barely above a whisper. Jace was already by her side, holding her up.

Alec still nodded appreciatively. He turned towards the others. "We'll have to keep her safe until we reach the Institute. Izzy, call mom. Ask her if we still have a Pyxis lying around. We can contain the demon there and consult the Clave for our next course of action." His sister nodded and made the call.

"We still have one. It's ancient but it's empty. It will have to do. Mom's recasting the wards and the runes just in case. She says she'll contact the Clave once we've locked the demons inside" Isabelle stated after handing up and tucking her phone into her hidden pocket. "Are we ready to move?" the rest nodded their heads.

"Alec, you lead. I'll stay in the middle with Clary and that thing. Simon and Isabelle, you take the perimeter." Jace ordered and they all fell into place like clockwork. They trekked back to Manhattan, slow and steady. Alec, Isabelle, and Simon made a small triangular perimeter around Jace, Clary, and the Sphere. The group ran into a pack of Dehak demons. They were easy enough to dispatch without needing Jace to be put into play.

Maryse greeted them in the Sanctuary where she had set-up the old Pyxis. "Liam is asleep in your old bedroom. I put guard rails and safety wards on the bed to keep him from falling. There's also the old baby monitor that still works. Here." She addressed Alec first and handed him the small radio receiver. "Take this in case he wakes up. I know you wouldn't want him to be anywhere near this place nor this demon. It will keep him from wandering off without you knowing." she spoke in a hushed manner that only Alec was able to understand her. He nodded and gave her an appreciative look.

"Thanks, Mom."

After him, Maryse turned to the rest of the group and lightly observed their injuries. It was a relatively light day. No one was poised, broken too many bones, and most of all no one seemed to be dying. She breathed in a sigh of relief before speaking again. "Clary, can we change the shape of that cage so it can fit in the Pyxis?"

Clary nodded feebly. She was already an unhealthy shade of pale. They needed to hurry before she collapses.

"Alright" Maryse directed. "Boys on either side of the Pyxis. Jace, you get the cover. Alec, be ready with the locks. Simon, make sure that it doesn't tip over. Isabelle, trade places with Jace in supporting Clary." They all moved like they were told. Ten minutes later, the Iblis was sealed into the Pyxis and locked under inverse protection spells.

Clary finally let herself collapse, falling onto Isabelle's shoulder. She released the hold on the demon and it rattled inside the Pyxis. "Relax" she heard Isabelle say softly. "Get Clary to the residential wing. All of you rest before dinner." She faintly remembered listening to Maryse's voice when strong arms locked beneath her knees. She was hoisted up and suddenly she was floating. The scent of Jace flooded into her nose and she felt herself loosen up.

Isabelle took Simon to the infirmary to get his shoulder looked at. Alec followed as Jace carried Clary to the residential wing. He paid no attention to the fact that they went straight for Jace's bedroom instead of a spare one that nobody used. He lightly shook his head but said nothing. He reached his room, near the end of the corridor and peaked inside. Liam was nestled underneath the plain white duvet, covers curling around his body like a nest. He smiled, toeing off his boots and heading towards the bed.

A feeling of relief washed through him. Liam was safe, his son was safe. He did all he could to push back the thoughts of the demon residing only three floors below them. He knew he needed a bath and a quick shower to rinse the grime off his skin but at the moment he cared for nothing but the assurance that Liam was safe in his arms. He tucked the boy into his arms, careful not to wake him, and closed his eyes. He listened to Liam's steady breathing and let himself drift to sleep, exhaustion finally claiming him.

***

Alec woke up, feeling a pair of lips brush over his forehead. Instinctively he arched back, leaning against the solid body spooned behind him. It was the familiar hardness which he awoke to for the better part of four years. Soft fingers brushed against his face, pulling back his sweaty bangs, and there was another kiss on his face. More kisses showered his face, drawing a line to the side of his cheeks, up to his ears until they reached just above his collar.

"You look gorgeous"  Magnus' gentle voice hummed against his ear. He felt the warlock's fingers travel over his sides, finding a way beneath his shirt and sprawling on his stomach. His skin tingled where he was touched. His boyfriend dipped closer, bring their bodies flush against each other in a comfortable embrace. There was no heat but rather a tender warmth between them. Alec lifted his chin, baring his neck and offering to be touched without words. The other man complied, palming him against the material of his tactical gear.

He moaned wantonly then froze when he remembered where they were. "Liam" he breathed out softly, one hand capturing Magnus' thin wrist. Magnus buried his face closer on the back of his shoulder.

"Liam is downstairs with Maryse." he replied, nuzzling further into Alec's hair. "They're making dinner."

Alec padded around with his hand. True enough, the space in front of him was warm but empty. He relaxed, letting the tension disparate from his body. He welcomed Magnus' touches and the sensation of skin touching skin. He missed this. Even if they were only apart for two days. It felt like two year had passed since the last time they've been together like this. Although, they had both been pleasantly distracted by keeping Liam company, he had missed this, so much so that he openly moaned when Magnus licked his ear. "Yes please" he whispered, melting against Magnus' long lithe frame. He lifted his arm, reaching back to brush the soft spiky tresses on Magnus' nape as he bowed his back.

Magnus dipped his head, curving his head on Alec's shoulder. "We're alone" he spoke in a low and husky voice. It was drenched in so much want that it made Alec shudder from head to toes. "Completely alone, _Alexander_ " he repeated, dipping his voice octaves lower in a way he knew would elicit reactions from his Shadowhunter. Alec moaned openly, leaning his full weight against Magnus even while they remained spooned on their sides.

Magnus let his finger roam Alec's torso languidly. He relished the way Alexander keened bonelessly against him, flexing the tight muscles underneath his fingertips. He traced over the pattern of Alec's gear, fingering the curves around the shoulder and the lines along Alec's sides. He brushed over the gash on Alec's forehead, healing it almost effortlessly. It had taken hours, years of practice to control healing magic. He had never really been interested in it before Alec came into his life. He's nearly as good as Catarina now when she first entered the hospital.

The blue sparks left a warm tingling sensation where they healed him. Alec hummed at the sensation. "How was your day?" Alec mused, wondering at the palms spread over his stomach. Caramel hands idly wrote patterns over his gear, pressing hard enough that he could feel it despite the leather. He felt Magnus nudging a leg between his. Obediently, he allowed the limb to slide into place, a jean clad-thigh sandwiched by black leather. He lifted both his hands to caress the warlock's face.

"Boring mostly" replied Magnus who purred when Alec's fingers began playing with his hair.  "A couple of mundanes, a spiteful fairy who wanted a spell to turn her mundane boyfriend into a toad, a female werewolf who needed a potion to get rid of her post-transformation follicles, and Lily stopped by for a visit., She played the piano for a while this afternoon until it was safe to go out again."

"Hmm" Alec murmured, soaking up Magnus' attention like a parched sponge. "How did she get there in the first place?" He remembered who Lily was. She was the current head of the Vampire clan in NY, taking over after Raphael, who died a few years ago during the Infernal War. He respected her. When he asked, there was not sense of pride or distaste in his tone. It was just curiosity about how the Vampire went out during the day.

"She passed through the old NY speakeasy tunnels. There's a door behind my building." Magnus answered. "She's a bit of an insomniac lately. I like her but I don't like that hound she carries around with her."

Alec absently nodded. He seconded that sentiment; not too fond of the thin black boy which followed Lily like a lapdog. "He's mean." he commented and pushed away the distasteful memory. "Anything new?"

"You'll never believe it but she consulted me about Maia!" he exclaimed enthusiastically.

Alec peered at him questioningly. "Maia Roberts? As in leader of the NY Wolf Clan, Maia Roberts? Where on earth did that come from? Is hell like freezing over or something? A vampire _and_ a werewolf? How is that ever going to work?"

Magnus, as mischievous as he was, simply laughed and started poking at his boyfriend's sides. "You're one to talk. You're a Nephilim dating a Warlock, darling." he reminded humorously. "Seems like wolf-girl has a thing for vamps even after she broke up with the daylighter. Apparently, according to this afternoon's tea session, it's been a slow build since then."

"Stop it!" Alec complained, carefully avoided Magnus' teasing hands. "Tickle fights are unfair!" he protested, earning a sharp finger to his side and he burst out laughing. "Stop it, Mags, you'll make my abs hurt from laughing." he managed to choke out between stifles of laughter. The taller man took his distracted state as an opportunity and flipped over, holding Alec's legs with his thighs using full advantage of his weight and height.

Men do not squeal, Alec told himself. But then Magnus poked him firmly just below the second rib and he _squealed_. "Angels! Stop it. It tickles!" he said between laughs, flailing his legs which were pinned under Magnus' weight. "I.can't.breathe.haha!"

"No angel. Part-devil, maybe" Magnus said with delight. There was a vibrant joy twinkling across his cat-like eyes. "I'm not stopping until you beg, Lightwood" But Alec stubbornly refused. He knew that if he fought hard enough, he could kick the warlock into next week without breaking a sweat. He could lift his legs, force Magnus to lean on his stomach and grapple him using just his ankles. He could grab those thin wrists and force them to flip the other man on the headboard. He did none of those because he really did not want to injure his boyfriend.

"Never!" Alec declared in defiance, voice mixed in with heavy laughter that echoed the room. "Not a chance, Bane!" They continued to wrestle on the bed for dominance. Sometimes, Magnus was on top and Alec distracted him long enough to flip them over. Then, Magnus would do the same and flip Alec back on his back. Their clothes became rumpled and disarrayed. The covers below them were already a lost cause. Alec was successfully on top now, pinning Magnus' arms above his head. The inches he had over the younger man was useless, Alec pinned him down effortlessly on the bed.

"Say you surrender" Alec taunted, leaning their heaving chests closer together. Their breaths were rough uneven pants, sweat gleamed on their skin, and their faces flushed from exertion. He leaned closerso that their mouths were hovering mere centimetres apart, not even an inch between them. A small drop of sweat glistened on his forehead and trailed down his nose. It dripped over Magnus' face. _Damn_ , the warlock thought, it was the hottest thing he's ever seen and he's seen a lot of things.

"No" he replied smugly. He could see the change in Alec's stance, ready to launch another counter-attack of tickles. He readied himself.

" _Ahem_ " a voice coughed from the doorway. Alec wasn't able to suppress his growl as he jerked his head to face the door. His eyes were narrowed and dangerous like he was ready to throw a knife at any moment. It was feral and went straight to less mentionable parts of Magnus' anatomy. " _WHAT?_ "

It was Simon, who blushed red like a ripe tomato underneath his glasses. This was his first time to walking in on the couple. Two guys in a compromising position was embarrassing as hell, especially if one of the said guys was your girlfriend's _innocent_ older brother. "Uhm, yeah, dinner, is yeah, now." he fumbled out the words, brain going haywire. "Uh, ten minutes, bye" he left, leaving the door wide open.

It took a good two minutes before Alec was back to his timid self. He released Magnus' hands and buried his face in his hands but remained on top of the warlock. "Oh my angel, did I just _growl_ at Simon?" he asked in embarrassment. "Jace’s not going to stop teasing me for _days!"_ He said, pinking up to his ears.

Magnus threw his head back and laughed. He eventually pried away Alec's hands and gazed up Alec's beautiful face. "You are still a mystery box filled with surprises, Alexander Lightwood" he said softly, cupping Alec's face in his hands. "One more kiss before dinner?" Alec gleefully complied.

At dinner, the NY Shadowhunters gathered around the expansive rectangular table. Jace, Clary and Simon occupied one-side of the table. Isabelle sat across Simon. It was an uncommon arrangement but they made it work. There was a faint blush from Simon as Alec and Magnus walked into the room, Alec looking like he had just showered and Magnus' damp hair slicked back pretending that he had not. Isabelle caught her boyfriend's blush and whispered "You walked in one them, didn't you?"

Embarrassed Simon merely nodded.

"That's why you _knock_ on Alec's door when Magnus is here!" she jokingly scolded him. Magnus slid on the chair beside her. Alec sat at the end of the table facing Jace. Maryse walked over, dutifully carrying a heavy glass pan. It smelled amazing. Liam was shortly behind her holding a big basket of garlic bread. "Mom that smells so good!" commented Isabelle as she eyed the Lasagna tray.

She smiled in thanks and placed the hot tray in the middle of the table. Afterwards, she reached for the basket which Liam handed her and ruffled his hair. Without a word, Alec pushed back his chair and helped guide his three-year-old to the highchair. "Dunwanna belt" Liam mumbled when Alec was wrestling with the safety harness of the chair. "Imma big boy"

"I know you are, Liam" Alec murmured back. "But this is for Nana and Papa. You don't want them worried, do you?" It took a while and a whole lot of cooing to convince the stubborn boy to wear the harness. His thoughts trailed back to the heavenly box one storey below. He thought about it and tried hard not to worry too much. He didn’t like the sinking feeling in his gut when he remember those hellish yellow eyes.

He finally returned to his seat, with Magnus a bit too close for comfort beside him. The table was not that big. It was enough to fit six people comfortably but eight was pushing it a bit. The young Shadowhunters kept brushing their elbows awkwardly throughout the meal. But Alec found himself thinking that if felt nice.

"Urgh Jace stop elbowing me!" Clary grumbled in frustration as she pulled her arm inward to avoid another one of Jace's involuntary elbow attacks. "I thought the Institute could house a hundred Shadowhunter here at any one time but it even fit seven adults and a child comfortably for dinner?"

"Don't need it. Don't share meals." Jace replied in a matter-of-fact tone in-between bites.

"So where do you guys normally eat?"

"Counters, kitchen, den, mostly rooms" Isabelle offered her answer.

"Infirmary too" Simon added before taking a fork-full of Lasagna.

"Hmmm" Clary hummed. It was strange that she was only noticing it now for the first time. Then she realized, she rarely _ate_ in the Institute at all. They were usually at Taki's, at the Chinese place run by the NY Wolf Pack, or in Idris. On nights after a particularly hard mission, they ate take-away in the infirmary huddled around the bed of whoever got hit the hardest. "It's stuffy but I like it."

"Alec?" Magnus' voice sounded soft in his ear. It was barely above a whisper but he heard it. "Something's bothering you." he said it like it was the most obvious thing in the world but concern dipped into his voice. Ithad taken him years but he learned to read bits and pieces of Alec's expressions. There was a tension on the archer's back, rigid lines underneath his black v-neck shirt, muscles straining into stiffness.

"It's nothing" Alec tried to hide. He can't tell him. It was still strictly Shadowhunter business that they were keeping an Iblis demon in the Sanctuary. Besides, he shouldn't be worried anyway. They used Pyxises before which is why they still kept and old one in the Institute after all these years. It was a trusted angelic instrument. Except, he was worried. He had never used a pyxis before. He knew in theory what it did but never really _used_ one. Or maybe, he hoped desperately, he was just more paranoid than usual. "Just..."

Magnus gently, placed a comforting hand on his thigh, resting it where no one else could see. He glanced at Alec from the corners of his eyes, careful not to draw too much attention to them. Animated conversation continued over their heads. "I know that face _Alexander_." His voice wasn't accusing when he said it but it made Alec's gut clench with guilt. Should he tell him? He shook the thought away. No, he couldn't.

"It's nothing" He said, firmer this time. He snuck one of his hands below the table, cupping over Magnus' and gave it a small squeeze. It seemed enough to reassure the warlock.

"Okay" Magnus eased up but he pulled his hand away and whispered in a low voice "But I still don't believe you." with a small frown.

"Maryse, is there any news from the Clave?" Jace piped up after some time. They normally debriefed the morning after but today's mission was relatively easy. It was light enough that Jace could bring up an informal debrief in the middle of dinner and managed to sound so casual about it. "What are we doing to do about big, bad, and ominous downstairs?"

Maryse glared daggers at him from the head of the table. "We do not talk about those things around the dinner table, Jace." She reproached, lips pressed a thin firm line. "We'll debrief tomorrow."

"But we're already here!" he groaned.

"We will talk about it tomorrow and that is final, Herondale."

Magnus gave Alec a look. "Big, bad, and ominous?"

"Yea" Simon confirmed from beside him. "We're got some sort of demon trapped in a box downstairs. First time I've used one though. It's some kind of weird golden box-thing that supposed to hold demons or something." he said, shuffling his shoes beneath the table and munching on some garlic bread like they were just talking about the weather.

"A Pyxis? You still have those?" Magnus asked in disbelief. He was genuinely amazed that they still used those medieval devices. "And it's here?"

"Shut up, Simon" Isabelle chastises from across him. "We don't talk about missions around the table." she said, discreetly glancing sideways to the warlock. It was not discreet enough for Magnus to miss though. He stopped eating. He thought, for once during the morning, that there might actually be a big chance that they were finally accepting him. Apparently, that was clearly not the case. So many details of their uptight Nephilim lives were classified to Downworlders. Downworlders like him. The feeling sunk to his stomach.

He flinched when Alec's hand gently touched his upperarm. "Magnus" Alec's voice was tender and careful. It only confirmed his suspicions. He waited, waited for the words that were surely to come. It would be along the lines of morals, duties, and Nephilim bullshit. He bit the insides of his cheeks, magic prickling on his fingertips. "Magnus?"

"It would seem, I have overstayed my welcome" he decided, his voice surprisingly steady. He was tired and now he truly felt it down to his bones. He was exhausted after a whole day of looking through the book of White and the Grey Book for clues about Liam's situation. The search came up empty. There was absolutely nothing between the two books. He twitched in his seat, settling off a ripple of frozen muscles down his lower back. "I wish to go home" he said, switching back to formal language like a default.

"Magnus" Alec said his name again.

He pressed his fingers to his eyes and massaged. "It would be wise to head home, Alexander. I'll wait for you downstairs after you both finish eating." with that, he was gone, leaving a trail of air in his wake. Alec slouched back onto the chair and groaned. It was like all his previous energy was zapped out of him.

"Why couldn't we just have told him?" Clary offered, wide-eyed at the exchange.

"Because we can't." Isabelle supplied.

"He's not one of us" Alec ended the sentence.

"That's nonsense and you know it." Clary gripped the fork and snapped. "We've known Magnus for a long time. Alec's been with Magnus for a long time. He's proven his loyalty so many times. Why can't just tell him that we caged a demon in the Sanctuary?"

"Non-disclosure. He's still a warlock and a downworlder whether or not he's with Alec. We're Shadowhunters. It's how it has to be." Isabelle explained. Her voice was tight and pained. It was clear as day that even she did not like the words she was saying. "It's part of our covenant, even with the Accords in place." 

"But what if he can help us?" she pressed.

"What is he betrays us?" Maryse cut in, her voice was cold as ice. Everyone in the room froze.

"He won't!" Alec shot back, loud and defiant. He was holding his hands in fists below the table.

"He's not Nephilim. His allegiance is not with us." she countered.

"His allegiance is to **me**." he gritted. "He doesn't need to prove himself any more than he already has. He has done enough. More than enough to get us all back here **alive**. Or did you forget so quickly?"

"He's not family, Alec." she said finally, using that card as a last resort. It was firm but it was obvious that she was losing. There was a pregnant silence that filled the room. The tension between Alec and his mother heightened as more time passed. Neither faltered in their gaze.

Alec unclasped the fretful Liam from his high chair and slung the child on his hip. "He may not be yours, but he’s mine. He is my future and I am his. Liam is _our_ future. You can either learn to accept that or this is the last time you'll see your warlock grandson, _mom_." It was strong and commanding and sounded like Maryse did most of the time. It took everyone by surprise. Not even Jace could manage a sideways commentary about it. The blue-eyed Shadowhunter turned around and headed for the door without a backwards glance.

"Daddy?" Liam's cut through the silence of the hall. He was tucked into the crook of Alec's neck, a little tearful. "Nana bad?" his voice sounding as innocent as his question.

"No baby" Alec's cooed, rubbing comforting circle's on the child's back. "Nana will come around."

 


	7. Chapter 7

The following day, Alec did not bring Liam with him to the Institute. He gave a small gruff as an answer when Isabelle opened the door and looked at him questioningly. It was barely six in the morning and the Manhattan streets were empty save for the newspaper boy and the elderly ladies going to the market. The last time he had arrived this early was when Magnus and he had fought about work-and-personal boundaries, four months ago. Izzy kept silent and gestured for him to get inside.

Alec still felt that sickly sunken feeling at the pit of his stomach. They had returned home last night without  saying a word to each other, and  Magnus had managed well to conceal his fury behind fake smiles for Liam the entire ride home. Alec knew the smiles were all a façade for the sake of the young boy and played along. After tucking Liam in, they laid on their bed without touching each other. It had been one of his worst nights in the apartment. He even woke up before his alarm and didn't bother trying sleep again. He put on his clothes and shrugged on his jacket before returning to the institute.

"Better get in gear, Mom's got something" she told him over his shoulder as she climbed the stairs.

They proceeded to the library after fifteen minutes, converging at the end of the stairs. He was taken aback when he saw that Simon and Clary were already in the library. The brunet Shadowhunter was wearing an arm sling. Alec could make-put the tell-tale signs of a white hard-cast beneath it. Having them called in this early meant something serious.

"Wasn't sure you were gonna to make it, bro" Jace said, not missing a beat as he jogged behind Alec and patted his shoulder. "Did Isabelle text you?"

Alec shrugged. "No" he answered, rougher than he’d intended. "She didn't, I came out of my own accord." The words sounded as awkward as he felt, despite having lived in the Institute for more than half of his life, it felt distant now--it was no longer his _home_.  Home was Magnus' sparkly glitter messing up the furniture. Home was the smells so many different body products which he couldn't even name but loved anyway because they smelled like Magnus. Home was having to wrestle the Chairman for the best spot to watch TiVo. This wasn't home.

Jace did to not shy away like the rest of his teammates. He made his way to Clary, plopped down beside her as graceful as Church and leaned back. His mouth twitched a little when he said "I'm glad you're here then. I hate going on mission without my _parabatai_ backing me up."

In response, Alec nodded with the ends of his mouth curving slightly. "Thanks."

When Maryse entered the library, suited in full Shadowhunter gear, she did not give Alec so much as a sideward glance before speaking. "There have been threats against the Mexico Institute. They’ve had a record influx of demonic energy levels which has been higher than  normal. Tomas has asked for assistance since his wards are barely adults and with the LA Institute still under investigation we're going in as support. The Consul fears that their portal might freeze next, Demonic influxes have also been recorded in the previous incidents with the other Institutes. Any questions?"

There was a sudden chill that washed over Alec. He swallowed when he heard the news. He clenched and unclenched his fists by his sides. "How long is this assignment?" he asked, thinking about Liam and Magnus back home and how they hadn’t made-up for their fight the previous night.

"It's only for a day unless their portal _does_ close. If that happens, we will have to wait another day for a warlock to be summoned." She briefly answered. Alec's initial thought was Magnus. Magnus had always been willing to help them if there was trouble. But he shook his head. No, there was Liam to think about. Liam who needed to be away from the demonic energy and demons. He couldn't put him at risk like that, so he remained silent.

"Who'll be looking over the NY Institute?" Surprisingly, it was Jace who brought up the question, normally he’d be the one charging into missions head on. He wasn't now, which was new.

"Good question, Jace." acknowledged Maryse.

"I--" Alec spoke up, ready to volunteer himself as the future head of the Institute but he was quickly cut off.

"Isabelle" called Maryse, drawing her daughter’s attention away from her boyfriend to her. "I want you to look over the Institute while we are away "declared Maryse making it clear to everyone in the room that she was gesturing to Isabelle. Isabelle's expression blanched then tightened. Everyone visibly looked flabbergasted at her decision.

"Me?" Isabelle blinking slow and deliberate. "You can't take me out of a fight!"

"I can and I will. You are a Lightwood. You will carry the duty of the Institute's care when we are away. It is your responsibility. You’re to stay here with Simon until we come back. An injured Shadowhunter is not one we bring on missions. Is that clear?" She explained monotonously. For a moment, Alec felt her words sting him like a solid titanium arrow through the chest. He focused hard not to grimace her verbal acknowledgement of his inadequacy. His steady expression held on. "You too" she said, pointing at Simon.

"But we're a team!" she complained. "It's always been the three of us."

"You should have taken that into consideration the moment you became involved and invited your partners into the ways of the Nephilim. You are a team of five now. I don't need all five of you in Mexico. We cannot risk our own institute being unguarded. This is a big responsibility, Isabelle. I assume that you are mature enough to take it."

She turned to Alec and continued. "We'll be meeting the Rosales' who manage the Mexico Institute. You've met Tomas in Alicante. Do you remember him? I want you to take this opportunity to learn the basics of handling various Institutes, Conclaves and Enclaves. You'll need it in the future if you plan on taking over the NY Institute."

Alec was stunned. They had never really talked about Maryse's retirement. They’d always figured that she would continue running the NY Institute until she died or something. He never really made plans for it, but he had acted as a proxy Institute head every time his mother was away.

There had been a point in his life where he had wanted it, when he was sure he could succeed after her and keep NY under the Lightwood family supervision. However, that strong certainty grew dimmer and dimmer with each passing day. There were so many rules, so many restrictions which the Clave placed upon Shadowhunters that he felt like he drowned in them at times.

Maryse walked over to the portal and redid the adjustments. The portal glowed and thin white rays of light flooded through the cracks of the door. It swung open slowly and its hinges creaked as though it hadn’t been opened in years and not days. Even from a distance, they could make out three blurry figures on the other side waiting for them to cross. Maryse gave the new trio a once over, tilting her head to the direction of the portal, then glanced back at the remaining pair.

"Take care of the Institute, Isabelle. Its safety is in your hands." She instructed first before turning her attention to Simon. "Drink the potions I left for you in the infirmary, it will speed-up the healing on your shoulder. You should make a full recovery within the day. I entrust my daughter to you, although she doesn't really need protection. Just... watch her back, got it?"

Simon took hold of Isabelle's waist with his good arm. He pressed himself to her side, in a show of assurance, and gave a strong nod in Maryse's direction. "I will. Stay safe." The latter half was addressed to the rest of his teammates along with a faux salute. It was only Clary who returned the gesture but he was grateful anyway. This was a show of trust in him and his abilities. He couldn't help but feel a small bloom of pride well up in his chest. He watched as the four Shadowhunters disappeared into the water-like surface of the portal.

***

Mexico was scorching hot. The whole city looked as though it bathed in hues of orange and yellow that seemed to go on forever. It was a stark contrast to New York’s blue and purple climate. Alec found himself loving and hating his sleeveless leather Shadowhunter gear.  On one hand, the lack of sleeves permitted the warm breeze to wash over his arms, on the other hand, the leather fabric made his chest feel constricted. It felt hot and cold at the same time: cool on his arms but too warm for his torso. The brutal heat was so dry he could feel his skin was being burned the instant they exited the portal.

"Wooh" Jace muttered under his breath, flinging away the remnants of the portal’s water from his hair. He immediately tugged at the zipper on his gear, opening the dark leather Shadowhunter suit that he was wearing. "This place is not the type of hot that I like."

"Respect, Jace" Maryse scolded. She was a good two feet in front of them but had heard him nonetheless. Man, that woman had impeccable hearing. Unlike the younglings, she looked as pristine as ever, holding herself in a more sophisticated version of Isabelle's stride. She had a practiced smile on her face, a rarity only reserved for official Clave business. It made Alec and Jace wince at the sheer falseness of it.

"Maryse," Tomas Rosales, a bulky man with broad shoulders, greeted them. He was wearing a black wife beater and dark green camouflage pants. There was a scar on his arm that made Jace visibly shiver: a rust-coloured brand.

"Jace?"

" _et cessabit_ " Alec whispered in unison along with Clary calling out the blonde's name. Alec had a hand on Jace's shoulder instantly, squeezing it gently. It was a comforting gesture. Jace relaxed under the touch and absently searched for Clary's hand, the girl was intuitive enough to reach out and link their fingers together.

"You ok?"

"Yeah" he breathed out, obviously struggling to keep his breathing steady . Memories. There were so many memories of Sebastian and Lilith and Valentine. Those were memories that he'd prefer keep hidden in the depths of his sanity. But on Tomas' arm was the evidence that all of it had happened. It hadn’t been a dream. "I--I'm... peachy."

"I wish we could meet under better circumstances. I apologize for troubling your conclave." Tomas told them sympathetically. He let his gaze fall on each of them. He started from Alec, then Jace, to Clary, and then finally, back to Jace. "Ahh, I see you're doing better." he said to Jace and pointed at the mark on his arm. " _Por favor_ , don't mind the scar. We all bear wounds from the Infernal War. It's a Shadowhunter's pride after all. I would not have changed anything."

"It was my brother's doing." Clary stepped in. "I'm sorry."

Tomas' eyes softened and turned to her. " _Niña,_ your brother's sins are not your own." he told her "our blood cannot dictate who we choose to be. On the contrary, I know I have you three to thank for curing us of the dark plague."

Clary blushed, unsure of how to accept the blatant compliments being given. Most of the Clave had looked at her with suspicion after the Sebastian-incident. No one except the Los Angeles Institute had even tried talking to her, let alone thank her for what had happened in Edom. She was, to say the least, speechless. "You--you're welcome, sir."

"None of that, _niña_. _Tomas_ , please call me _Tomas_." he said before gesturing for the pair behind him to step closer. "These are my wards." he presented. "Diego and Cristina" as he said their names, the young Nephilim gave a small nod.

"Diego RocíoRosales, Diego." the boy, who was only slightly shorter than Jace, said. His skin was dark from tanning. He wore his long  unruly black locks, messy, and shoved back roughly by his fingers. It was slicked with dampness and stayed in ridges. He wore a black shirt with the sleeves ripped off, exposing his toned arms which were covered in runes. He had dark blue jeans which were frayed at the bottom and heavy brown boots on his feet. On his chest glinted something silver like a pendant but it disappeared under the shirt’s collar.

"Cristina Mendoza Rosales. Ina, please." Cristina stood only a few inches below the boy. Her skin was the same shade of caramel, her dark brown hair hung in loose curls over one shoulder with a big plastic flower tucked in the opposite ear. She wore a puff-sleeved surplice romper ensemble with loose long sleeves that went down to her mid-thigh. It had a v-cut neckline and a thin black belt; she had some kind of medallion which hung perfectly in the middle of her chest. The whole thing was finished off by nude-coloured platform wedges.

"My sons and my ward" Maryse returned the introduction with one sweep over the three Shadowhunters behind her. "I think they need no further introductions, but I believe you had _three_ wards, am I correct?"

"Alexander Lightwood, just Alec is fine."

"Jonathan Christian Herondale but I prefer Jace."

"Clarissa Fairchild. Please call me Clary."

Tomas nodded. "I apologise that Jaime is not present. He's currently scouting the Basilica. He should return by noon."

Maryse quirked an eyebrow. "You send them alone?"

"Ahh, well, the Basilica is a sacred place. Demons will not be able to penetrate it during the day."

"Understood. But with the heightened demon activity, I assumed that you’d be more... cautious. Your wards are, after all, still children, Tomas."

"My brother's an adult!" the boy, Diego, bit back fiercely. The anger clear in his inky black orbs, aggressively directed at Maryse. His fists curled into balls as if they were the only thing holding him from fully lashing out and lunging at her with as much angelic fury as he could muster. "He turned eighteen last week. He's legally an adult so don't call him a child!"

"Diego!" came Tomas' sharp reprimand. The boy's reaction was instantaneous, noticeably reeling back his reaction, but he kept his fists balled up and looked away. He had fire in him, a dangerous angry fire that was reminiscence of Jace. It was a fire that Alec wouldn't mind putting out any second now but he held firm. "I'm sorry. This boy has a temper, just like his brother." He shot the boy a warning look before continuing. "I trust that Jaime can take care of himself, his orders are strictly recon. The Basilica is a sacred place for the locals. There have been sightings there and because we cannot risk mundane collaterals we'll be heading there tonight."

It was Maryse's turn to nod. She played the role of ambassador well, she had the same fake smile on her face and offered Tomas her arm. "Perhaps you can give us a tour and allow us to get settled?"

Tomas, like the perfect gentleman, kissed her hand and took her arm. "My pleasure, _señora_. This way please, I'll show you the residential wing and take you to the library. Diego and Cristina will prepare lunch. We can change into our gear after we've all eaten. It's best to be well-fed before missions. Should we bring the children?"

Maryse took one good look at the rest of the NY conclave and shook her head. "Let the children mingle with the children." Jace was about to retort something back but Alec's hand was fastened on his shoulder again. He glanced up, catching a look in his _parabatai_ 's eyes and understood. He didn't nod. He didn't make any inclination whatsoever to move. He unlatched his fingers from Clary and melted into his playboy persona. This was a mission. They had a job to do.

"May I?" Jace strode up to Cristina and offered her his hand. The girl actually _giggled_ before placing her hand on Jace's up-turned palm. He gave a suave wiggle of his eyebrows that made Alec and Clary roll their eyes but went along with it. He always played the bad boy that girls loved. Besides, Isabelle wouldn't be able to control her rage over Simon. They tried that once. It didn't end well for either party.

Luke has been called for a Council meeting, taking both Clary and Jocelyn along. Naturally, like the clingy boyfriend that he was, Jace tagged along to Idris. Alec, Isabelle, and Simon were sent on a small fact-finding mission with some faeries. Since Alec was infamously known as the boyfriend of one very powerful warlock, using him as bait was out of the options. It left Simon with the task of charming the faerie girl Kaelie for the information they needed. Apparently, the trick he learned from theatre camp stuck with him. He convinced not only the faerie girl but Isabelle as well. She threw a fit when they got home, challenging him for a round on the sparring mats, and landing him in the infirmary from a bruised side. Maryse wasn't pleased and she _grounded_ Isabelle for being so childish. The girl was held back from missions for an entire month until she learned the difference between personal and professionalism.

"Let's go princess" he said with his signature smile.

"So tell me," Cristina spoke. Her voice was smooth and feminine. She draped a hand so casually over Jace's bicep, clearly an invitation for the blond Shadowhunter. They were leading the group of five to wherever the Mexico Institute's kitchen was. She leaned in close, as though she were whispering. "Is it really true that you were transported to another realm during the Infernal War? We've heard stories about it but Uncle _Tomas_ refuses to tell us any details." She said the last part a bit scornfully.

"We were." Jace kept his answer short. "But why would a pretty thing like you want to know about something so ghastly?"

Her eyes darkened but she kept her gaze. "Because we were in Idris when it happened and they didn't tell us anything. They only told us that the faeries had betrayed the alliance and that the Council members were kidnapped. Father... he was caught up during the espionage and never returned home. But you did, you brought them all home. How did you do it?"

Jace shook his head. "I'm sorry about your father. But the thing in Edom; it wasn't me. It was..." he turned over to Alec, certain that his _parabatai_ was quietly listening on the side. Alec just gave him a pleading look asking him not to reveal anything more about Magnus. "… We were fortunate to have a very good friend who helped us. "

"Who?" she asked persistently.

"Ina" Diego's voice came from behind them. There was a warning tone to it.

"Aren't you the least bit curious, Diego? You already had your closure when they burned Valentine but I never got mine. I never got the pleasure of seeing Sebastian Verlac's body burn because we were guarded inside a house like _gameberros_ " She spat out the last word with so much venom that it could melt through stone.

"He wasn't Sebastian Verlac." Alec said quietly. No, by calling that _thing_ Sebastian was like defiling Elise Verlac's deceased Nephew, it was more than the poor boy deserved. "He was someone pretending to be Sebastian. Sebastian died long before the Mortal War began, let alone the Infernal War. He killed Sebastian and took his name."

A pregnant pause  surrounded them. "His real name was Jonathan Christopher Morgenstern. He was my brother." By the time Clary stopped speaking, the five of them had stopped moving altogether.

"That's a lie!" Cristina shot out. She pulled out a folded knife attached to a long metal chain seemingly out of nowhere, blade flicking open in a swift movement. She held it with a backhand grip and it came very, very close to Clary's neck. Jace had been held back by Diego, steel grip on both his arms. He would have had no problem hurling the boy onto the floor and grounding his boot into Diego's neck, if not for Alec's quick reflexes.

"Stop it" Alec whispered, low and deadly. His grip on her wrist was iron tight. Her hand had already began to discolour. She winced when he gripped harder but she did not drop the blade. She told herself that she would not bend so easily. "Clary showed you a great deal of trust by being honest about who she was. Is this how a Shadowhunter repays such honesty?"

"Let go of my hand." She said between gritted teeth.

"Release her, you freak” Diego yelled from behind them and Jace's vision turned red. He used Diego's grip to his advantage. He crouched down, hurled the shorter body over his head, did a smooth backflip, and landed with his boot square on the boy's neck. He did not hesitate to press his heel down harder, only satisfied when he heard a choking sound.

"Come again _darling_? I didn’t quite catch that you see, what did you call my _parabatai_?" Jace leered with a sickly sweet voice, peering down at the boy below him as if he were about to squish a cockroach. No one called his blood-brother names. That right was exclusive to family. 

"Jace" came Alec's warning voice. "It's not worth it."

Jace shrugged and looked like a boy whose candy had been taken way from him. "Fine" he grumbled and eased his footing just a bit. The boys sputtered and gasped for air, like he was bobbing his head out of water. Jace made a show of calling out a Seraph blade and pointing it directly over the Diego's crotch. "Make a move and I forever revoke your right to reproduce."

"Clary" Alec said steadily. If not for the five years of working together in the field, Clary would not have noticed the humour in his tone. "Mind doing the _thing_ now?"

Cristina felt a cold shiver run up her spine. She watched, in hidden terror, as Clary's eyes transitioned from sweet to predatory. It was the first time in her life that she had ever experience this kind of bone chilling fear. Clary grabbed her just above the wrist. Her cold fingers were a sharp contrast to Alec's hot fingers. She literally froze in dread. Clary took out her Steele and began to draw. The sensation burned hotter than any of her previous marks.

"All done!" Clary declared proudly before stuffing her Steele away. Alec moved back soundlessly as though he had never been beside her just seconds before. Her skin was darker at the wrist and it looked like a bruise would there come morning. Cristina realised then that she literally _couldn’t move_. She couldn't even look back when Clary repeated the phrase a second time.

"W--what did you do?" she cried out, forcing all of her focus and energy into just getting the words past her lips. "What did you do to me? Where's Diego?"

"Ina, I'm right here. I can't move!"

"Neither can I!"

"We've frozen you… Or rather, Clary's frozen you." Jace's voice filled the deserted corridor, cocky as ever. Served them both right. No one treats one of their own like that and gets away with it. "And you children will remain frozen until you've come back to your senses. Is that understood?"

"You can't do this to us!"

"We'll tell the Clave what you did. This should be illegal."

"Oh no" said Alec. "It's perfectly legal. You see, Clary froze you with a rune. And if you call the Clave on our bluff, we will tell them that you attacked a Shadowhunter without provocation. We were merely defending our own. We haven't even drawn blood." His voice was colder than ice and harder than steel.

"We will tell them that you attacked Clary when she was merely offering the truth. If you can't handle the truth then you shouldn't have pried into our personal lives. So, you both have a choice, either remain frozen, or you both get off your high-horses and listen, your choice." Jace finished. "Let's see who the Clave decides to listen to: war heroes or punk-ass kids like you."

"Jace, Alec" Clary chastised. "That's enough. We were teenagers like them once too. She was warmed by the way the two boys reacted and came to her aid but this wasn't the time to be fighting fire with fire. She understood the burning flame behind Cristina's eyes and the hatred that she felt. She had once felt that too. "If I let you go, will you promise to stop fighting with us?"

It took them a while but the pair finally nodded. There was tension in the air as they made their way to the kitchen. Cristina and Diego had clung together, seemingly still untrusting of the trio. Jace, Clary, and Alec didn't mind at all. They somewhat understood where the two teens were coming from. On the way there, Clary and Jace reiterated the whole complicated story about Valentine Morgenstern, Sebastian Verlac, and Stephen Herondale. By the time they reached the kitchen, the pair had also opened up about their experiences during the two wars. 

 

***

 

"Daddy? Papa?" Magnus woke to the bed dipping with an unfamiliar weight. It took a while for his foggy mind to realize that it was his son clambering up onto the bed. Liam wore a grey top and red bottoms pyjama ensemble that Magnus had seen at a shop window. He rolled to his back, opening his arms so that Liam could snuggle up to him. "No Daddy? Where’s Daddy?" the boy mumbled against his side.

Magnus' large hands ran up the boy's back and he held him closer. "Daddy's got Shadowhunter business, that's why he left early." That's right, Alec had left early in the morning without even saying goodbye. He knew the stupid fight was all his fault. He had finally begun to think that they had accepted him when reality suddenly gave him a splash of cold water to the face. In the end they slept back-to-back last night and he barely got a wink.

"Liam bad?" the child peeked up, gazing up at him with the big gold-green cat-eyes.

Magnus shook his head and leaned down to kiss the boy's head. "No baby. It's not your fault. Daddy had work like Papa. Sometimes Daddy has to leave the apartment." He brought the boy closer to his side. "But you get to stay with papa the whole day today. How does that sound?"

"So Liam not bad?"

"No Liam, you aren't bad. You're the best behaved boy I've ever seen." The child positively beamed at the compliment. Magnus watched in awe as yet another Lightwood seemed to warm its way into his heart. "Do you want to go have breakfast at the bakery?"

Liam nodded. "Waf-fuhs!"

Magnus grinned. "Waffles it is then. Come on" he said, swinging his legs to the side of the bed. He rummaged through the closet and began his search for clothes. At the back of his head he thought about Alec and how much he wanted to apologise for acting like a complete arse.

 

***

In the end, Jaime never made it back to the Institute for lunch. It was early in the evening when two Shadowhunter teams were sent out. The first team consisted of Jace, Diego, and Cristina. They were sent to patrol within a one hundred meter radius of the Basilica and report any spikes in demonic activity. Meanwhile, Alec and Clary were sent to rendezvous with Jaime _at_ the Basilica. Maryse and Tomas stayed on point inside the Institute studying the readings again and trying come up with a more concrete area where demons were more likely to attack.

 

There was a light buzz originating from Clary’s pocket and she took out her phone.

**Jace:  
** _[5:17pm] Why do I get stuck babysitting?_

**Clary:  
** _[5:18pm] Because Diego is a bigoted homophobic idiot and Ina has a crush on you._

**Jace:  
** _[5:18pm] Do I hear some jealousy, Ms. Fray?_

**Clary:  
** _[5:10pm] Shut-up Jace. Let me work._

Clary proceeded to shove her phone into the deepest pocket she had. Alec just gave her the _look-who's-texting-who­_ expression which she was sure he had stolen from her. She hit him on the arm as they approached the Basilica. It was _huge_ , bigger than the Mexico Institute and it also had an expansive open-air plaza in front of it. It was complete with four bell towers on each corner and a big golden dome in the middle. People were everywhere: on the streets, in the plaza, and lining up outside the church.

"So there's a Mass?" Clary said, pointing out the obvious. Alec merely rolled his eyes and eased back into a dark shadowy corner. She watched him before realizing that he was scanning the crowds and did so from an optimal vantage point.

"We need to go high" he told her, bringing out twin daggers from his back. "Can you climb?"

"Can I what?" Clary asked dumbfounded.

Alec pointed up towards the side of the building. "Can.you.climb? Or do you have to portal everywhere?" he asked a second time, more playful rather than insulting. "Because we really need to get to high ground. The crowd is too thick and we won’t manage properly on street-level. I think the roof would suffice."

"You want to climb with that?" she said in a sceptical voice, pointing to the blades.

Alec shrugged and nodded. "Got any better ideas?"

Clary sighed. Nephilim and their primitive ways. She gestured towards the building next door which conveniently had a fire-escape. Alec scratched the back of his head and re-sheathed the blades. "That ~~can~~ works too." he agreed, jogging to the next building with Clary trailing behind him.

The view from high-up was more spectacular than it was at ground-level. They had a great view of  Mexico City and a great vantage point to assess the Basilica situation. So far, there had been no disturbances around the area. But then again, the night was young.

"There!" Alec said under his breath. They figured it was right after the late afternoon Mass when the demon caught Alec's eye. It was on the very top of the Basilica, moving with efficiency.

"There's someone fighting it" Clary added, pointing towards another figure on top of the tower, smaller and more agile.

"That must be the missing Shadowhunter from this morning.." Alec barked out, already half-way down the stone steps.

"And it looks like he's losing."

%MCEPASTEBIN%


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Alec, Magnus, and Liam greet you a **Happy New Year**! There's sparkling grape juice for the kids and champagne for the adults. Jace may, or may not, have snuck in a couple of beer when no one was looking. Don't touch the sparklers that Magnus brought. Isabelle has made the sponge cake, you've been warned. Clary decorated! 
> 
> _Warnings:_ Unbeta-ed. I really, really, really wanted to post something before 2014 ends. So this is without Shimiko's seal of approval. I'm so sorry darling. I just _had_ to. Will edit in January 2015.

Jaime gripped his thigh where the Rehab demon's whip-like tail caught him as he was rolling away. Normally, he would have no problem with dealing with such a demon but he was tired and bloody from the earlier run-in with a pack of Moloch demons. His leg burned like it was on fire as he tried to make another quick getaway. His seraph blade was dead and his only remaining weapon was a dagger. It was useless given that this particular type of demon needed long-range weapons.

He never thought his life would end like this. He always thought that he would die in glorious battle during a war or something just like Christina's father. He didn't expect to be overcome by a mid-level Rehab demon. It wasn't even a greater demon that would seal his faith. The slimy looking tongue looked like it was about to fire the final blow. He closed his eyes and waited for hit. But the sting never came. Instead there was a thud on the roof right in front of him.

Jaime cracked open his eyes to see an arrow pinning the demon's tongue on the roof tiles. He looked up and literally saw, what must be, an angel jumping from one of the bell towers--a bow and arrow wielding angel. The angel with dark black hair landed soundlessly only a feet or so in front of him, effectively covering him from the demon's blows. Then an onslaught of arrows rained down on the, very, unfortunate creature.

"Clary, shield!" he heard the angel yell. It sounded a bit hoarse but absolutely heavenly. Within a five minutes, the demon was pinned down by more than a dozen arrows on different part of its body. It flailed about miserably like a whimpering dog begging its owner for mercy. It was stuck on the roof like a ragdoll. Another body, a girl with fiery red hair, leaned over his leg and _ripped_ his gear to assess his leg. He flinched. Thomas would have a fit because of that.

The hip quiver dropped on the ground beside him and once more his attention was focused on the angel towering above him. It was a very tall, very male, and very muscular looking angel. A bow came after, but it was placed carefully on the ground instead of being unceremoniously dropped. He caught a glimpse of pale skin and a sharp nose. He followed the angel's boots with awe as he made his way towards the demon. There was no trace of fear in his posture or stance, just an aim of determined confidence.

As graceful as his earlier flight, the angel jumped high into the air with too much grace to be human and called on seraph blade while in mid-flight. The angelic blade roared into life and glowed white. The angel plunged it right in the middle of the demon's head. If that wasn't enough, the angel _sliced_ through the creature with a steady blow. It took mere seconds, but to Jaime it was like in slow motion: the angel jumped away again and the demon exploded. He flinched, closing his eyes on instinct to protect them from the ichor that was sure to follow. It never came.

"Hey" a voice broke his thoughts. He didn't have a drop of demon blood on him. He looked around in puzzlement. A crystal-like sheen was the only indication of an actual shield between them. The angel was looking down at him. He has the most beautiful face that Jaime had ever seen: pale, slightly reddened, face with clear blue eyes like that ocean. He couldn't even find his words to talk when the angel offered him a hand up.

"You must be Jaime, right?" he nodded. "I'm Alec Lightwood from the NY Institute. And the awesome woman beside you is Clary Fray."

"I, uhm, thanks" he stuttered. The angel--no, the angel was actually a man, a very handsome Shadowhunter man--named Alec gave him a barely-there smile but he felt his heart flip nonetheless. Words bundled in his throat like he was a teenager and not the eighteen year old adult that he was.

"Sorry about your pants" Clary, the red-head from earlier, suddenly spoke up. In her hands she held a small scrap of tattered clothes which he recognized as part of his pants or, at least, what used to be part of his pants.

"Pants?" he repeated back in confusion.

"Yeah, I had to cut your pants and tended to your leg. It was kind of bleeding all over the place." she explained, bringing her hands up to show him just exactly how much blood he lost. Her forearms were covered with blood stains. It made his stomach lurch, memories of the Dark War ringing in his mind like a plague. His vision blurred.

Jaime paled. He was never one to like the sight of blood, especially not his.

"Jaime? Jaime! Are you alright?" the angel's voice called out to him. "Jaime!"

Alec sprang into action, hooking his arms underneath the younger man's armpits and holding him upright. "Oh boy, a fainter." he muttered under his breath. He struggled to balance out the boy's weight and eventually gave up. He lowered them both on the ground until Jaime was lying down fully on the bloody Basilica roof.

"Oh dear, what are we going to do now? We can't carry him back to the Institute." Clary said, sprawling down beside him.

"Yeah. We can't."

"So what now?"

Alec shrugged. "I suppose we have to wait for Jace and the others. Maybe you can text him to come get us? Three boys should be enough to carry an unconscious one from a roof of a Basilica."

"Good thinking." Clary pulled out her phone, typed a short message before storing it away. "Did he faint from shock or blood-loss?"

Alec glanced at the boy again, noting the varying new wounds that littered the caramel coloured skin. He shuddered, mentally picturing his boyfriend's skin in the same condition. He quickly shook that thought away. There were a couple of deep cuts but what bugged him was the scorch marks on the clothes.

"I think this may not be the first demon he encountered today. See those marks. They come from Moloch demons and those usually hunt in packs. The kid must have dispatched of them even before coming up here. That's pretty brave, and stupid, like something Jace would do."

Clary laughed and bumped her shoulder hard against his. "Moloch demons, huh? So if they're in packs, it means that they're the lesser demon-Molochs, not the greater-demon ones."

"Sometimes you get both. The lesser demon Molochs are like foot soldiers or pawns on a chess board. They're useless without higher officials. In the case of Moloch demons they have a general which gives them orders."

"So that means that there is a Greater Demon who wanted them here in the Basilica? What for?"

Alec shrugged. "I don't know. But we've got trouble if another Greater Demons decided to play games in this realm. I would rather not repeat the fiasco from five years ago, thank you very much. So you better watch my back, Fray."

 "Of course I would, Alec! You're like family after all" Clary replied, wrapping her arms loosely around him. "I don't let anything happen to the people important to me and don't tell me otherwise that you're not. We're known each other for four years, friends for three years, and I've treated you like a long lost brother for the better half of two years. Don't forget that, ok?"

Alec slouched back further to the ground and heaved a breath. "Yeah. I won't."

 

***

 

It was too cold to work. Magnus didn't like the fall weather. Sometimes it was still too hot and at times it was so chilly he wished he had a coat. Which is why he was currently sitting in his cosy little den with his son curled against him.

"Bunny!" the boy exclaimed, pointing at the bunny cartoons on the TiVo.

Magnus, who favoured his own share of crappy reality shows, grimaced the colourful albeit inaccurate depictions of bunny rabbits on the screen. It was some kind of Kid's TV show that was supposed to be educational or something. Oh hell, he hated it. In his time, parents would spend time with their kids to actually teach them stuff and not bum around and let tele-people do all the work.

He huffed and closed the TiVo, for once using the remote.

"Liam, you wanna see papa do magic tricks?" he asked with the best impression of a clown he could make. "Papa make you bunny rabbits?"

"Buwee?"

"Bun-ny" he corrected. 

"Bun-nee" Liam parroted. He rewarded the boy's efforts with a warm smile.

"Bunny rabbit" he said, waving his hands in the air and making smoke-rabbits.

"Bunny!"

The door bell rang for what seemed like the millionth time that afternoon. Magnus, not bothering to check who it was, flicked his hand dismissively at the intercom and mumbled.

"You have reached the High Warlock of Brooklyn. I am temporarily unavailable. If you or anyone your know needs medical attention, please redirect your attempts to Catarina Loss at the Beth Israel Hospital. Her working hours are 24/7. If you are in need of any other magical assistance, you may visit Malcom Fade the High Warlock of Manhattan. His office hours are..." he paused, completely forgetting when exactly Malcom's working hours were. "shit. I forgot. Just go bother him. I'm busy."

He flicked his hand one more time to close the com. But the person on the other side was persistent. The bell rang three more times consecutively.

"Seriously, I don't want to take client rights now---"

"MAGNUS BANE! YOU BLOODY PIECE OF MANURE! YOU BETTER OPEN THE EFFIN DOOR!" Tessa's voice boomed through the intercom. She mimicked the enchantment he normally used to chase off strays. He flinched.

"Tessa, I--" he was cut off by the insistent pounding on his door. THUD. THUD. THUD.

"MAGNUS!"

With a sigh, he moved. "Sorry baby, papa's going to let old grumpy auntie Tessa inside. You be good okay?" He waited for the boy to nod before kissing Liam's forehead and ruffling his hair. The pounding on his door never ceased. He must love this woman if he didn't incinerate her right then and there.

"Tessa, why are you so---" he asked as he opened the door. He stopped abruptly when a piece of paper was thrust into his hands. "--grumpy?"

"It's Ragnor." She told him with urgency. "Where's Liam? Is he safe? Are you safe? Is this place safe?" she hurried around the room, checking every nook and cranny as she went. Her fingers were glowing with her red magic, tucking away at every crease. He could hear her chanting several spells of protection and warding. 

His blood ran cold.

Magnus raced through the apartment like he was being chased by an unknown assailant while Tessa chanted. He could feel the pricking feeling on his skin. He skidded through the hall, cursing as he went when stubborn splinter of wood decided not to make a his toe its new home. It wasn't the time to superficial wounds. He need to get to his son.

"Liam!" He burst into the den, ready to strike. The child sitting on the couch jumped in shock and burst into tears. "Oh Liam! I'm sorry. Papa is sorry. I didn't mean to scare you." Magnus cooed, letting the harshness of his features melt away as he closed the gap between them.

Liam sniffled and turned away, believing that burying his face under baseball printed sheets would make everything bad go away.

"Baby" Magnus hushed, gently letting his fingers brush over where Liam's head was tucked under the orange comforter. "It's okay. Papa is right here. Papa is sorry." But every time he reached out, the child flinched away. His heart broke as he heard more pronounced sniffling under the sheets. He was so bad at this. He wasn't meant to be a father. He didn't deserve such a sweet boy like Liam. He---

The boys wailed. "Scawd" he mumbled as he curled onto himself.

As if on autopilot, Magnus wrapped his arms around the sobbing child and began whispering words of comfort. Words that were never said to him. Words he always longed to be said to him. Those were the words never spoken to him during his childhood. But they were words Alec often said to him. "Hush now darling. I've got you. You'll be okay. I promise. You're safe. You're here. You're with me."

Little by little, the shaking eased.

"Hey Liam" he said in his gentlest voice just loud enough for the boy to hear. Then he waited until thick black hair peaked out of the covers and gold-green eyes bore into his. "Do you want to see a magic trick?"

He didn't wait for a reply. Rubbing his hands together, he created light blue smoke between his palms. He worked his hands like a potter would work with clay until the small shape of a bunny appeared. Very slowly, the bunny stood up from its couched position. It's ears flicking ever so often like it was listening for something. Then it hopped.

"Bunny!" Liam squealed in amazement, all his previous thoughts suddenly forgotten. "Bunny!"

The bunny flicked its ears like it listened to him. It hopped again.

Magnus brought his hands into the air again, making a tableau from smoke: hills, trees, and rivers. Liam's eyes watched in fascination. "Bunny! Bunny!" he said with glee. "Touch bunny!"

With a snap of his fingers, Magnus used the smoke-bunny out to the hall and into the living room.

"Really, Magnus?" Tessa questioned with irritation clear in her voice. "I come to you in haste and you make bunnies?"

"A bunny" Magnus replied with a shrug. "It helps him." he said, pointing to the boy following the smoke-bunny around cautiously. Liam was flopped on his belly, head craned on the floor, as he tailed the smoke-bunny's movements.

"So" He continued, dropping casually on couch. "Ragnor" his eyes darkened as he said the name.

Tessa lost all casualness from moments before and sinks to the couch beside him. "Read it" she ordered, gesturing to the wrinkled piece of paper in his hands. On it was an ancient rune-- _protego_ , the Latin for protect. It was followed by Ragnor's chicken scratch writing of the letter "L".

"Protect L" Magnus looks over the note two more times. "Protect Liam. It must be Liam, right?"

She handed him a second piece of paper. This time, he immediately saw the shakiness of her hands. It looked torn from the same parchment as the first note but this time it was covered in blood. "I checked." she told him, keeping her voice tight and steady. "It's Ragnor's blood."

"He's alive. He must--" he began but Tessa's raised hand stopped him.

"I know. I traced him. I picked up trail but it's faint." she explained. She waved her hand faint map of Idris appeared on his old wooden floors. "Which is why I came to you. Tracking is not my strongest suit. But you've done it before with Jace. You can do it again. With blood it should be stronger than a day old shirt..." paling as she told him "... it's fresh."

Magnus had to consciously sensor his words. He tasted the coppery taste of blood and the sting inside his cheek from where he bit. "Let me get my books. Keep the apartment warded and secure."

"I only know a few spells. We should call Catarina."

"No!" Magnus nearly shouted, cutting her off. "She's... we need to save her healing abilities. Get Malcom Fell the High Warlock of Manhattan." When she didn't move, he all but yelled. "NOW!"

 

***

 

"Get away from my brother!" Alec heard moments before he was being wrenched away from Jaime's unconscious body as Jace and he clambered down the steps. The extremely violent reaction took him by surprise, his body had been compensating for the extra-weight and the instant loss made him stagger a bit. He was shoved to the side by a brawny body. He gritted his teeth to hide a wince.

"What the angel is your problem?" he snapped. He also had to reign in his hands; otherwise, he would have hit the annoying boy into the next week. As much as he wanted to deny it, Diego was proving to be more stubborn than Jace. That, in itself, was a feat.

"I said" Diego countered, stuffing his bulky frame under his brother's arm. "Get.Away.From.My.Brother." He repeated, emphasizing with word with a distinctly Spanish accent.

"If you wanted to help your brother so much, you could stop wasting your energy on useless quarrels and concentrate on getting back to the Institute." Alec shot back without missing a beat. He didn't ever enough time for Jace to cut in with his own brand of snide remarks. "You love your brother, that's fine. I get it. Don't mind me, because I am not getting in-between your bro-mance of the century." He turned around without waiting for Diego's comeback. He knew well-enough that the boy was practically rage to his ears in rage.

Jace opened his mouth but Alec shook his head. He lifted his bow from its perch on his shoulder and readjusted his quiver. "I'm better on guard anyway. You boys have fun." he told his _parabatai_ with a triumphant smirk and could not help up swagger his eyebrows suggestively. It was childish banter but he knew he won that round.

Jace let out a loud laugh. "Guess we know who's rubbing off on who!"

Alec lifted the side of his lips. He pulled out the first arrow and sheathed it to his bow, ready to send it flying at the sight of any demon. "Come on, let's go. Clary in front, Ina on perimeter, and Alec at the back. Let's get Jaime home and healed" He yelled over the second flock of Moloch demons headed their way. There was about thirty or so headed towards them and converging in the alleyway. The nasty creatures were noisy as hell.

The team made their way further into the alley, using the small crawl-space as a bottle-neck to slow down the on-slough of molochs. Half of the team was indisposed with Jace and Diego currently supporting an unconscious Jaime in their arms. They were flailing between offense and defence, protecting their injured comrade or killing the demons who threatened their way. Clary was wielding a long seraph blade while Ina was using her _surujin_ in a similar fashion to Isabelle and her whip. They took care of the molochs who made it pass Alec's arrows. 

" _de puta_!" Cristina cursed when she looked up. "We've got incoming from above. Five things too ugly to be just birds. They're too high for my _surujin_ to reach."

"I've got it!" Alec yelled, using a dumpster to propel himself upward. He fired three bows into the air while still in trajectory. There was a deafening screech coming from the creatures. Alec hit one straight in the head, another on the body, and the last on the wing. He bit the inside of his lip and shot two more arrows in succession. He hit one near the end of its body and the second one embedded on another wing. Two more were headed towards them. He reached back and felt the lack of arrows in his empty quiver. "Tch!"

"Jace!" he shouted, looking back just enough to glance at his _parabatai_. "Give me a blade!" The blonde nodded, pulling a spare blade from his belt and throwing it to Alec like a dart. Alec tightened closed his hands the second the warm adamas slid between his fingers.   "Nakir!" he called out, allowing the blade to form into its angelic glory. Angelic power shot out like a canon and spurted into white fury.

Alec made a beeline run for the metal fire escape and launched himself onto the railing. He extended his full body, willing himself to be lighter and seemingly float through the air until his hand gripped the cold steel. He swung his body up and landed heavily on the rickety steps. He bolted right up the stairs, heading straight towards the roof. Throwing stars darted past him. He twisted and angled his body and allowed the starts to shoot through openings and miss him completely. Using the railings as leverage, he launched himself into the air for a second time and killed of the last two demon birds before dropping to the roof. The carcasses fell around him.

"Disgusting" he muttered under his breath. The smell hit his nose hard. From this vantage point he can see the last waves of molochs entering the bottleneck. Their strategy had worked. On the ground, Clary and Cristina were picking off the nasty things one by one. But they were far from safe. Alec spotted shadows gathering just beyond the Basilica. He has seen that sight before--demons were swarming. They needed to get out. Now.

"Clary!" he roared to the alley below. He saw the redhead look up. "Portal. Now." He commanded before swinging down and heading towards them. Nakir was still in his hands. He surfed down the fire escape with practiced grace. He swung off the steps, utilizing enough inertia to seemingly walk on the wall before landing a blow on the demon which Clary was fighting.

"They're swarming. We need to get back to the Institute. NOW." He said fiercely. He jerked up then towards the side, catching the moloch's arms and slicing it clean off. He pulled Nakir and plunged it deep into the demon's skull. The moloch demon exploded and they both jumped away. "Hurry. I'll cover you." he said to the girl. Clary withdrew her blade and nodded. She rushed into the protective circle, pulled out her steele and began drawing.

"Portal? What portal? There's no portals here!" Cristina shouted it between strokes. She was finishing off a moloch demon with her long chain wrapped around its neck. She pulled hard until the chain cut through flesh and decapitated the creature. "The inchor must have gone to your brains! We need weapons not marks!"

"Oh really?" Alec allowed the smugness to tinge his voice before calling out to Clary. "You ready?"

"Just a little..." Clary grumbled, shaking hands drawing on the ground as sweat poured into her eyes. She concentrated on finishing the lines despite her lack of breath and bleeding arm. "Done! Jace, get Diego and Jaime ready. Alec, pull Cristina when I say. Ready." She waited until the two boys gave her nods of acknowledgement before making the last stroke.  Her rune glowed until it formed a portal around them. "Jace, you go first!"

Jace looked over at her then shared a look at Alec. He would never leave her behind, at least not alone. Alec lowered his head the tiniest bit and he knew his _parabatai_ understood his unspoken plea. _Get her safe_. He surged forward into the opaque water of the portal before pulling Diego and Jaime after him. Once he was completely gone, Alec hooked an arm around Cristina's waist then took Clary's wrist. "Let's go" he grit out, urging the two girls forward.

"Clary, ready to close. Yea?"

"Yeah."

They all emptied their pockets of throwing stars before jumping into the luke warm portal.

 

***

 

"Any news?" Simon inquired, peaking his head through the slightly ajar door of the library. Inside, Isabelle hunched over the large oval table which contained the all the Enclaves and Conclaves. She had a deep furrow on her forehead that meant she was thinking very, very hard--hard enough that she almost isolated herself from the entire world.

"Isabelle" he called louder a second time. Her head lifted up in response.

"Huh, what?"

"Any news from Clary and the others?" he repeated the question as he entered the room. He frowned when she minutely shook her head. "Still nothing? Not even a text or some kind of message or anything?"

"Simon" Isabelle's voice was warning. "They've only been gone half a day. We're off on missions all the time and sometimes we take at least a whole day to finish."

"But it's go and investigate. It's fine."

"Then why do you look like that?"

"Like what?" Isabelle asked, blinking in confusion.

"Like you're making room for a harvest on your forehead. Stop it or you'll have wrinkles." He knew it was a douche move but he hate seeing Isabelle Lightwood _that_ worried. "Izzy, I'm serious. Tell me what's the matter." he said, reaching over the table to take her hands.

She shook her head then closed her eyes. Simon could feel the anxiety washing over in waves.

"I'm looking for a pattern." she told him.

"Pattern? Like X marks the spot or the Bermuda triangle?

"No" she stated, looking over the table again. "There's got to be something. The portals can't be random. There's something that's linking them all together but I don't know what."

Simon studied the green and red lights on the table. But they were scattered and so, so random. "I can't see anything."

"Look" she pointed to a flickering light. "That's the largest Institute in South America--Sao Paolo. I think it's being invaded."

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh please so comment on how your enjoying the plot so far. Help my plot bunnies run wild! :D 
> 
> This is my last chapter for 2014. To all those who have kudos-ed, commented, and bookmarked this story, I am extremely grateful for all of your support. I would not have gotten this far without you all. This has been a wonderful year in the TMI fandom. I immensely enjoyed writing MALEC this year. I haven't been in the fandom for long but I love it. I will continue to write next year. Hopefully, this story will be finished soon. Hope you liked my TMI MALEC stories. See you all in 2015!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guess who's baa~ack? After almost a year-long hiatus in the TMI fandom, I am returning to you with a whole another chapter of this story! I apologize for the long wait. I have no excuses. But, please, do enjoy. <3

Malcolm Fade was a relatively young warlock by Downworlder standards. He's only been around for a single century but that doesn't make him any less powerful, or supported for that matter. He moved to London in the early nineteenth century but later on, after an event that he would much rather forget, he moved on to the land of the free when it was just about to earn it's freedom. He settled there, made a name, but his passion for adventure led his to many different places for his travels.

He stopped aging at a much latter part of his growth, giving him an appearance of maturity which he used to the advancement of his craft. He was the Warlock they called when they needed an adult in negotiations. It was hilarious, these Shadowhunters and Downworlders alike, still did not understand the concept that time and age for a Warlock are merely worlds and that the true value of their kind lay in experience. Appearances were mere facades but never told the entire story.

He fell in-love with New York City. He loved the tall buildings, the wide-streets, and the diversity of the population. It was never boring. The sheer number of mundanes littering every nook and cranny of the city meant that he could be a rowdy, eye-turning, punk walking along Broadway, and by night he would be, still an eye-turning, devilishly handsome young upper-class man. Those he interacted with will never have been any wiser. He simply loved surrounding himself with mundanes because there was never a boring day with their ever changing world.

From time to time, he found himself a patron. Someone who he would openly divulge his secret with in exchange for board and lodging. His current patron, whom he met six years ago, was a middle-aged African-American woman who didn't even blink when he told her. She was rich, recently widowed, and offered him a room at the top of her attic in exchange for her keeping him company. Which is why he enjoyed a nice suburban view of the New York City skyline in the evening and the sun-rise when he wakes up.

The place made perfect sense and he became the second High Warlock in the city of New York.

"Malcolm" a deep voice greeted him when he entered his loft. In the middle of the room stood an Astral-projection of the High Warlock of Brooklyn, and his friend, Magnus Bane.  The man assessed him with his pair of his golden green cat-like eyes, arms crossed over his chest. "You look well. I see that you've changed addresses yet again." the man pouted. "How are you supposed to keep your clientele if you cannot be found?"

Malcolm laughs and steps inside. He slides his dark charcoal jacket off his shoulder sand hangs it on the rack. "You and I both, Magnus. If they need us, they'll find us. Isn't it the reason you came to find me this afternoon?" he levitates a bottle of Brandy and pours himself two-fingers. He summons the freshly filled glass. It smacks into his open palm with a thud.

"Clever, as always." Magnus replies with a smirk. "There's something I need your help with."

Malcolm takes a sup. "Couldn't you have sent a fire-message like a normal Warlock?" he asks, eyeing the other man carefully, attempting to see behind the body if there was other details being projected. But Magnus was careful, and sly, he was deliberately limiting the projected images. "That's an awful lot of magic you're using for this to be a simple request."

"Ragnor is missing." Magnus says but Malcolm can read the stiffness in the other Warlock's voice. It wasn't the entire truth, not yet. "His blood has been spilled and I need your help to find him."

Ragnor Fell was an idiot, a pervert, and someone that Malcolm had grown to care for. Except that the stupid green-skinned fool had gotten himself besotted with some bloodsucking kid. Lilith have mercy that he was bemoaning the name of the dead undead. But even remembering the kid's name gave him an after taste of bile in his mouth. But this was Ragnor.

Malcolm cursed. "Where?" he asked, dropping his glass down on the table. "Where do you need me to go?"

"Brooklyn." Magnus answers. "Bring every spell book you have in your arsenal. Ragnor went to see Baba Angieszka and now he's missing."

Doubled-curse.

 

***

 

Isabelle was in a state of panic. Books, scrolls, and parchment was scattered around her on the floor like a field of chaos. She was the middle, half-sitting and half-standing, one knee thrown of the table as she leaned closer to the map and her other was planted firmly on the ground beneath her. Her tall, pointed Shadowhunter boots giving her the extra leverage she needed for balance. Sweat pooled on her forehead, clinging to her bangs while she wrote furiously.

"Is there news?" Simons asks, looking over his girlfriend's form and frowning. He didn't like it when Izzy was like this. The normal cool and composed ninja warrior was melting into the Isabelle Lightwood all those years ago, the Isabelle Lightwood who had pushed him away, pushed everyone away, because she thought she was at fault for her younger brother's murder. He steeled himself and walked towards her. Never again, he had promised, never again will he let her fall. "Izzy, talk to me."

She banged her fist on the table, furious. "It's no use Simon. The Clave is responding! I've contacted everyone---in Indris, the other Institures, the Consul... my father! But they haven't told us anything but wait." she groaned, folding into herself. "By the angels, I should be there. I should have gone with them!"

"Izzy" Simon called, but she kept to arms wound tightly around herself. "Izzy" he tried again without getting any further. "Sophia Isabelle Lightwood!" he yelled, deliberately messing up her name in a way he knew that she hated.

"It's Isabelle Sophia! How many times do I have to tell you that?" She all but screamed, tossing a large half-rolled scroll at his direction. He dodged it with years of practice in being a nerd during mandatory dodge ball.

"Good." He grinned at her lazily because at least now he had gotten her attention. "Will you listen to me now?" He asked and waited for her to nod before approaching. "Maryse left you in-charge of the Institute for a reason and that's because she knows that you can handle the responsibility of holding down the fort while they're away on business. I know you wanted to go with them but _this_ is a part of who you are too, whether you like it or not."

She nodded.

"So aside from the whole Dark Nephilim, almost dying, and losing my immortality, I'm kind of still new to this Shadowhunter-thing. What exactly is the protocol when something like this happens?" He asked, allowing her to pull away.

Isabelle shakes her head. "We call the Clave."

"And we did that." Simon agrees. "What do we do next?"

"We wait." Isabelle responds.

Simon purses his lips. "Okay" he said, thinking. "Okay. So we wait. Your brother and Jace and Cary are in San Paolo. They've got to be the most kick-ass Shadowhunters of our generation, aside from you and me of course. They've fought and _survived_ two wars before we all reached the age of majority. If and when any Institute was attacked, they would have been sent in as reinforcements without a second thought. Isn't it better that they're in the front lines at soon as it start?"

"I want to be there" Isabelle confesses. She grips Simon on the bicep of his good arm and squeezes. He flinches but she only squeezes harder. "But I cannot leave this place unguarded."

"I know" Simon answers. "Come on" he says, pulling her off the oval table. "We can do is give them more answers when they come back. And I want you to get your mind off this before you grow permanent stress lines on your forehead."

"We need to look into portal magic. The NYC portal needs to be open when they come back."

 

***

 

The six of them tumbled their way into the small Villa which was Mexico Institute. Jace hit the ground first, diving into a ball on instinct and landing with one leg tucked beneath him and the other bent in front of his torso. He couched, letting his arms fall open and waited until the lumpy figure of Jaime Rosales falling after him. He caught the boy under his shoulders, making sure not to jostle his head. Fifteen minutes, he counted, the boy had been out.

Diego tumbled after him. He may have grown but he still didn't like people demeaning his _parabatai_. Instead of the care which he took in catching Jaime, he side-stepped away and let Diego fall flat on his face on the dirt clay flooring. It shouldn't be hilarious but it was. It was like watching Simon the mundane on his very first Shadowhunting mission. But he was, at the least, mature enough not to laugh out loud. He snickered though, because he was still half-human.

"Watch out!" he heard Alec's voice yell from the portal. Seconds later, the blue-eyed man descended from the portal with a very surprised Cristina in his arms. She was holding onto Alec like he was a lifeline, arms wrapped around his shoulder and face buried against her neck. Alec carrying her under her back and her knees, bridal style. He cocked an eyebrow at Jace and pointed to the portal.

Jace nodded, easing Jaime off him gently before positioning him directly in the portal's path. Clary feel moments later, hitting Jace square on the chest and they both dropped to the floor together.

"Oooompf!" Clary groaned. She clutched her bloody forearm against her chest. "Hey" she said to Jace weakly. Her green eyes were glassed over the way they did when she over-exerted her abilities. She gave him a faint smile, nuzzling into his shoulder. "Everyone get out safe?"

"You were the last one out, slowpoke." Jace answered, kissing her the temple. He turned to Alec, who has let a shaky Christina out of his arms and, was checking Jaime's vital signs. "Alec" he called and the other boy turned "We need to get them in the medical wing and have Maryse look over them. Maybe Tomas has something that will help them recover faster."

Alec nodded but then he turned to look at Diego's prone form sleeping on the floor. "Even him?" he asked, looking way to serious for it to be a joke. It made it even funnier.

Jace laughed. He rearranged Clary in his arms and stood up. "Sadly" he replied then turned to Cristina. "Can you walk? Two of us can't wake you all there at one. If not, you need to watch over Diego while we take Jaime and Clary to the infirmary then come back for you. His wounds are more severe and Clary needs her rest. Making that portal wasn't easy."

"I---uhm--no" Ina frowns. "I'll wait with Diego."

Alec makes a face as he manhandles Jaime onto his shoulder. "Pity" he says to Jace, who get the jokes and laughs again. "I was hoping that he can crawl his way back to the infirmary. He _did_ say that he wanted none of my faggy hands to touch him."

Jace pats Alec on the shoulder. "Why did you think I didn't face his pretty face from kissing clay?"

The corners of Alec's twitch smile. "That's why I love you." he says.

"Of course you do. I'm me!"

The pair disappear into the corridor with light-hearted laughter. Cristina curls herself into a ball, sitting near Diego's head, staring after them. She's heard about the young generation of Shadowhunters from the New York Institute. They were, at least the way stories describe them, nothing short of legendary. But she has never believe the stories. She always suspected that the numbers reported in the Clave documents were altered to show the NYC having higher statistics.

Seeing them fight for the first time up close made Catrina rethink her initial assumptions.  They had fought valiantly together with Diego and her, not once bring up their lack of experience in the _real_ world or their weaknesses in their techniques. Instead, they encourages them to fight side by side and let them fight in the battle _with_ them. All this even _after_ she had insulted Clary for her brother and Diego had insulted Alec for his preferences. It made her feel like a complete and utter idiot. She sulked.

Not far from Cristina, Jace and Alec placed their respective charges on the surfaces of the infirmary. Since the Mexico Institute was rather small, it only had a single bed inside and a couple chairs. Jace draped Clary into the one nearest the wall, allowing her support on two surfaces. Then he turned and helped Alec get Jaime laid out on the bed. He shook his head in disproval.

"Where will we put the other one?" He asked with a frown. It was more for himself rather than anyone else. He surveyed the room and its lack of surfaces. He isn't used to caring for such a small Institute; he lived inside the wall of the NYC Institute for most of his conscious life.

Alec huffed and circled his shoulder, grunting in mild discomfort. "He weights more than he looks" he mumbled under his breath. He held the back of his shoulder with his hand and started rotating it. He flinched when pain jolted on beneath his hands. He pulled away his hand and groaned when he saw the blood. "Magnus is going to be prissy about this." he said, tugging on the shirt and seeing the damage. "He just bought me this shirt a week ago."

From the side of the room, Jace stared at him with awe. His eyes narrowed. "Who are you and what did you do to Alec?" he asked looking completely serious. "Did you really just complain about having holes in your clothes? Instead of the fact that you're bleeding?" But then he stopped, waved of his comment and continued. "Again, you're worried about your clothes, really?"

"No and no" Alec deadpans. "He'll be pissed about both. But the wounds he can heal, the clothes he will complain for a month. You don't know how he gets, Jace, you wouldn't understand!" He presses in mock surrender. "He'll go on and on and on and on and eventually guilt me into buying a new one. You know how I hate going shopping... the mundanes _stare_."

Jace rolls his eyes and doesn't bother to respond.  He goes to the check the inventory, looking for anything that vaguely resembles Maryse' replenishing draught which she left for Simon. He wants to prepare a bottle for Clary in case she needed the extra strength on the journey home. He scoured the back of the cabinets, only finding some salve for Jaime and cream that Cristina might be grateful for. He also pulled out a couple of gauze bandages so he can tend to Alec's shoulder.

"We better go get the others" Alec suggests, pushing himself off the chair which he settled in. His shirt was off, probably because he had intended for Jace to fix his shoulder, but it showed off thing other than his flesh wounds. His torso, stomach, and sides were flecked with numerous little love bites which varied in shape and size, especially around his nipples. The dark-haired boy seemed to be oblivious to the not-so-innocent marks on his body.

Jace cleared his throat, fighting the blush that resulted from gathering too much information about Alec and Magnus' very active relationship. "You might want to" cough "put your shirt back on" he says, hoping the other boy understands him.

But Alec seemed too tired to think. "Buzz off, Jace. It was a pain to take-off." he says waving Jace off. "Let's hurry up and pick up the children so you can do something about my shoulder."

"Fine, have it your way." Jace replies, pointing Alec to the mirror. "See for yourself if you want to keep it off." He knows the exact moment that Alec realizes his embarassing position because there's clattering near the mirror and Alec mumbling under his breath about his 'stupid warlock boyfriend'. Jace chooses to laugh it off, glad to see that Alec put on his shirt by the time he turned around.

They head back to Cristina and Diego. The boy seems to have woken up and was resting his head on Cristina's lap. "Yo" he greeted weakly.

"Good" Jace speaks, planting his hands on his hips. "You're up. It means we don't have to drag you."

"Can't stand" Diego shakes his head. "Everything's spinny"

"Spinny?" Jace parrots.

"Yeah" Alec concedes. "Clary's portals can be tough on first-timers. Happened to me too. You should get him up" he says, already offering his hand to Cristina. "Boy had qualms about a Downworlder-lover like me, right?" he tells Jace with a fake smile, loud enough that it echoes the small hall. Diego flinches.

"Sorry" Diego says in a quiet voice.

"Look at that, Alec. The boy's repenting." Jace mocks, grunting as he pulls Diego to stand beside him. He hooks the boy's arm over his shoulder and heaves. Alec didn't bother responding. He was half-way down the corridor with Cristina in tow. "You pissed off one of the nicest persons I know. I've got to hand it to you, you're a special work of art. You called the guy who saved your brother's life a freak."

Yeah, Jace hasn't totally grown up yet. It wouldn't be half as fun.

 

***

" _Diyos Miyos!_ " Tomas gasped when he arrived in the infirmary to see all of his wards looking like they fought a battle and nearly lost. Cristina was sitting on one of the chairs, gashes on her shoulder and soot covering her face. Her arms lay limp in front of her. She had her head thrown back against the wall. Diego was on the floor, with bandages around his arms and a makeshift cast on his lower leg. His hair was dirt, plastered over the side of his face. His fingers were bloodied and chaffing.

Jaime caught him by surprise, a lump blocking his throat when he saw the boy lying on the bed unmoving. It was rare for them to use the medical bed. Demons in these parts were scarce and weak. Since they were near sacred territory, it was rare for demons to even bother entering their protected borders. His oldest nephew had the blood drained out of his face, giving him a pale complexion, his lips without an ounce of colour.

" _Jaime_ , what happened to him?" he asked to the room in general. The NYC Shadow hunters weren't better off. In reality, they were worse. The girl was slumped in the corner, dead to the worst from complete exhaustion. The Lightwood was bleeding from a deep wound at the back of his shoulder, flinching every so often as the other boy, Herondale, patched him up with gauze. All of them were bloodied and bruised.

Maryse follows him shortly. "What happened?" she repeats his question.

"He fought, oww, a rehab demon at the Basilica. Watch it, Jace. Nearly killed it, shiiii--, to but it looked like it wasn't, urgh, his first demons of the day. Hey, you're purposely botching it up, aren't you? He was down to his last dagger when Clary and I found him." Alec explains, glaring at Jace as best he could without having to turn around. He'd gotten used to Magnus' healing magic over the years and almost forgot what real Nephilim medicine felt like, it was not a pleasant experience to relive. He hisses in pain as Jace closes. "Are you finished?"

"Yupp" Jace says, patting him directly on his wound. "Good as news."

Alec groans at the blond' antics. "I should leave you to heal like a mundane." he says between his clenched teeth.

"Alec?" Maryse prompted. "Jace? Care to explain the rest?"

"There was a swarm of lesser Moloch demons near the area. They smelled the Rehab blood scent on Jaime and followed us." Jace said, hopping off his perch and walking towards Clary. He stroked her cheek with the back of his hand. "There was too many of them. We couldn't fight them off so we retreated. But Clary save Jaime's pant leg. It might give us a clue to the sudden swarm." He handed Maryse the tattered denim.

"It might be because..." Alec started saying.

"another Institute is being attacked." Maryse nodded at her son. "Isabelle sent us the fire message a few minutes ago but I haven't been able to reply back. There's interference in the fireplace. It must be from the demonic energy in the area."

"I can text her" Alec offered, patting his pockets instinctively then groaned. "I left it at home. Jace, you text Izzy. She might be worried out of her mind. You know how she gets." he said to Jace.

The blond nodded, pulling out his phone and firing a text.

**Me:  
** _[8:17pm] Maryse got your message. Demon energy bad. Interfering with fireplace._

**Izzy L.:  
** _[8:18pm] WHY DIDN'T YOU CALL ME?!_

**Me:  
** _[8:18pm] Sorry? What's wrong?_

Jace frowns, looking at Isabelle's last message. She was mad but he didn't understand why. It was not uncommon to miss calls while on a mission. It was never a good idea to be distracted in a fight. Isabelle should know that. She was the one who scolded him about Clary during the--let's not go there--time of his life. Did something happen? Was she in trouble? Fear gripped him, as he gripped the phone.

"Easy Jace" Alec chastises with a weak smirk. "You'll break your phone. Then what will you call Clary on?"

"Isabelle's---" Jace gets cut off by the sound of his phone ringing. "Izzy, what's up?"

"What's up?" her voice comes through the receiver. "I HAVE BEEN WAITING ALL DAY FOR YOU GUYS TO CALL AND ALL YOU CAN SAY IS 'WHAT'S UP'?" she demands over the phone. "San Paolo's been invaded. The signal hasn't gone down yet and the Clave hasn't sent a word."

Jace's frown deepens. "Have you tried contacting Robert?"

"Yes! But even Dad is too busy to respond. Something's up, Jace. I can feel it." She says. "There's something that they aren't telling us."

 

***

 

Malcolm arrives at Magnus' apartment shortly after dinner. He's dressed in a sharp, dark-blue pin-suit with slim lapels and an even skinnier tie over his lavender shirt and grey waistcoat. He doesn't bother with the mundane doorbell. He opts, instead, to sent a twinkle of his magic up to Magnus' window. Granted, it was the middle of the day but he was never ashamed of who he was and he was a warlock. He liked to flaunt his abilities. The latch opened seconds later.

"Magnus!" he greets the cat-eyed man like an old friend. "Tessa!" he doesn't bother waiting for in invitation and walks directly into the apartment. He gives the warlock-Nephelim hybrid a kiss on both keeps. A bell rings near to his side and he spots the fat kitty. "Chaiman Meow! How good it is to see you!" he exclaims, scooping up the feline and giving it a twirl.

"Malcolm" both Warlocks greet him in unison, one with warmth and the other with aloof distance.

 "Alright. Shall we all get down to business?" Malcolm asks. He releases the Chairman, who scampers off into the kitchen, and takes a seat on an large purple ottoman. He did love purple, after all, it matched his eyes--and his suit! "Tell me about Ragnor. You said he went to Baba Angieszka. Why would he do such a thing?"

"It was a Clave mission. Jia Penhallow sent him." Tessa explained.

"The Nephilim Consul?" Malcolm's eyebrows shot up. "Are we at the Clave's beck and call now that we agreed to form a Council?"

"It's not like that." Tessa argues. "She went to me for help but I didn't have the answers. I went to Ragnor and asked for him to help..." she stops, looking down, unsure how much of the Clave's problems she can divulge. "So he volunteered to go to Baba in my place because he knew she wouldn't even entertain me because of what I am."

"Tess" Magnus consoles but she shakes her head.

"Then we get this." She chokes out, revealing a portion of the cloth with Ragnor's blood. "I--I can't---I'm not strong enough to track him."

Malcolm crosses his arms. "Then why don't _you_ " he says pointing to Magnus "put on a tracking spell?"

Magnus visibly clenches, something he rarely let's anybody see. He looks down, eyeing something in his bedroom which Malcolm couldn't see. "I have something to protect. I won't be able to sustain tracking magic for the length of time we will need to find him." He says while still looking towards somewhere behind him. "But you can. You have enough magic to find him."

Malcolm is furious with Magnus' answer. "What is so important to you that you cannot use your magic to help a _friend_? Is money that important to you, Bane? It's Ragnor for Lilith's sake! What can be more important than one of my--your oldest friends?" he bursts out, jumping into a stand. His fists crackles on his side, purple sparks coming to life.

"Don't raise your voice" Tess warns, big does eyes opened wide. "Malcolm, you need to calm down. Please." she begs, raising both hands in a placating manner. "You'll scare the poor boy."

"Scare who?" Malcolm demands.

"My son" Magnus says quietly. He goes to the spot where Malcolm has seen him staring into and walks out with a small boy clutching tightly onto his pyjamas.

"By Lilith" Malcolms says.

Magnus picks up the boys, and places him on his hip, all fatherly and kind. "Baby, show Malcolm your eyes, will you?" he says gently, lifting the boy's dark black bangs off his face. The boys complies, opening his eyes and staring straight into Malcolm's soul. It strikes the fear of Lilith into him. "See?" Magnus says, "He has my warlock marks. He's my son."

"Or your father's son." Malcolm refutes, still standing. He glares at the child and points an acusatory finger towards Magnus. "Same-demon parents, although rare, can results in the same marks. I am young Magnus but I'm not a fool. He can't be your son. That's impossible." He edges closer in Magnus' space, daring the other Warlock to step back but  Magnus' feet are firmly planted.

"Do.not.tempt.me.Malcolm." Magnus warns, saying it word firmly and with steel. "I will not hesitate to put you in your place." He holds the child, clearly protective, closer to his body. He allows the boy to face away, face buried against his shoulder, small arms clinging to his. "He has my marks. He has my blood. He's my son. But I asked you here to Ragnor and not him. He has _nothing_ to do with this. Will you help or was calling you down here a mistake?"

Malcolm steps back, head lowered, and hands going up in a surrender. "I'm doing this for Ragnor and not for you." he turns to Tessa. "Give me the thing with his blood. I'll set up the tracking spell." Tessa complies, handing him the piece of parchment. He closes his hand around it and closes his eyes.

Malcolm goes into a trance, whispering ancient words, using old magic. His hand glows in purple hues. When he opens his eyes, they're shining brightly. "He's alive. I suppose that you don't want me here in your apartment. I'm heading back to mine. It'll be easier to sustain the spell when..." he looks to Liam "I'm comfortable. I'll keep you posted." He opens his palms and tucks the cloth into his pocket. "You know where to find me."

Magnus and Tessa watch him go.

"Do you think it was right that he found out about Liam?" Tessa asks later when they've settled down and Magnus had brought into the bedroom for a nap. She's holding stolen coffee from the Mud Truck.

"There was no choice" Magnus admits, folding down beside her. "He wouldn't have agreed otherwise. He raised valid points."

 

***

"We need to go home." Alec announces as he walks out of the infirmary. Maryse and Tomas are engaged in a conversation. He may or may not have interrupted them but, at the moment, he did not care. "Mom, we need to go back to our Institute. As soon as possible."

"Alec" Maryse says in a dark tone. "If this is about Isabelle being left alone to watch the Institute..."

He shakes his head. "It's not. There's nothing more we can do here tonight and there aren't enough beds for all of us. No offense, Tomas. It's better for everyone to go back to New York and portal again tomorrow. At least Jace and Clary can have a good night's rest."

"Alec..."

"The kids will be fine. Diego's a little knocked up, Cristina is plain exhausted, and Jaime will wake up in a few days. He'll be uncomfortable but he will heal. I think it's better for you to take us home." Alec presses, eye unyielding against his mother's steady gaze. "You promised us that it'll be one-day mission."

Maryse studies her son careful and slowly her lips curve into a smile. She whispers something to Tomas the older man nods and leaves. "Are they the only reasons you want to go back so badly?"

"No" Alec frowns. "Izzy thinks that the demons and the freezing portals are somehow tied together. There are more book in New York than here. We can do more good there: five of us together against the entire NY Institute Library Collection. I feel like..."

"Like what Alec?"

"Like things are just going to get worse from here." He finally confesses. "I worry. I worry about the boy and the man I left behind in New York. I never used to worry."

Maryse entire face softens and she takes her eldest into her arms. "Oh Alec, that's what parenthood does to you." She whispers into the embrace. Alec's hands shake, his entire body trembling, until he wraps his arms around her as well.

"I don't like feeling like this." He tells her. She squeezes him tighter in response, hands raking through his hair. Alec has rarely hugged his mother. After Isabelle was born, and even more so after Max, the frequency of their mother-son interaction had decline. Because he was the oldest son, he brought it upon himself to be stronger, to be the rock of whom his sibling could hold on to. And Maryse was nearly always away. It felt---it felt nice, soothing in a way that he had long forgotten.

"I feel the same thing every single day when you and your sister go out on mission." Maryse says. It was not an accusation or a confession. She said it like it was a fact. "But I have to hold strong and believe that you two will come back to me alive."

Alec nods.

They go back into the infirmary to get Jace and Clary. The blond scoops the Clary's petite frame into his arms, carrying her like he's done so in many battles before this, and gives them the okay. Maryse leads them back to the Mexico portal. Tomas is there waiting. She nods and him and she nods back.

"I will send one of them back tomorrow to help with your rounds." Maryse tells him. "I hope your younglings will be better in the morning."

Tomas offers her a smile. "Thank you for your Enclave's help. We will not hesitate to come to you when you need us."

"I hope that it will not be necessary." Maryse is first to enter the portal. Jace and Clary Follow.

Tomas clasps onto Alec's wrist before he reaches the portal. "Young man" he says "Do forgive Deigo. He---he was gravely affected by my brother's death. His actions, mere reflections of his anger."

Alec gently pulls his arm away. "I did what my duty, Tomas. Personal feelings should not affect our vows to the Clave." he answers before disappearing into the water.

 

***

 

"Alec!" Magnus' voice was the first thing that he heard when he came out of the water. "Daddy!" Liam was the next, right before a large unknown projectile landed at the centre of Alec's torso. He wrapped his arms around the boy in instinct. Liam squealed in delight, clinging to him like he did in Idris. Alec blinked, eyes wide, uncertain of what was happening around him. Portal travel can be a little bit disorienting, especially for a tired Shadowhunter.

"Hi baby" Alec coos. "Daddy's missed you." And it's the truth. Half the time his thought had been back here in New York thinking about their little boy.

"I asked them over when I realized you'd left your phone." Isabelle says, in a matter of fact tone, somewhere from the sidelines. He can already picture her smirk and the way she has one hip cocked-out with her hand planted on her waist. "So you wouldn't have to travel all the way back to Brooklyn."

Alec blinks some more. "T--thank you...?"

"You're welcome" Isabelle replies. "Jace already took Clary up to the rooms. You should too." She says before the sound of her heels hitting the wood began moving farther away.

Finally, finally, the bangs are wiped away from his face and Alec can see beyond his black locks. Magnus is right in front of him, dangerously close. Alec knows he would have been closer if Liam had not been between them. The flush that floods his face is nearly automatic. Three, no four, years they've been together but the novelty of Magnus staring into his eyes like he's the entire world is as strong it was all those years ago.

"Hi" Magnus whispers, placing a soft kiss on his cheek. The warlock wordlessly shuffles Liam into his arms, easing the weight that Alec suddenly registered. With his adrenalin plummetting, he can begin to feel the full-weight of his body's injuries.

"Hi" Alec replies quietly. Magnus steps into his space, bringing their bodies close together. Chest to knees, his dark gold-green eyes staring into Alec's soul. He almost feel his knees buckling---ompf, there they go and Magnus is ready to catch him. The Warlock's arms wraps around Alec's back, holding Alec's weight against his own body. "I guess I'm pretty tired."

Magnus hums, seemingly content to bury his nose in Alec's damp hair. "We should get your sister to babysit tonight. I think you need a little extra-care. Long day?"

Alec exhales loudly into Magnus' neck, only to breath in the spicy scent that is Magnus Bane. "Very" he confesses. "You will not believe how long it felt."

"Then it's decided" Magnus announces. "If you can get your sweet little cheeks to cooperate, we can take Liam to Isabelle's room." He steadies Liam on his arm. "What do you say, baby, do you wanna stay with Auntie Izzy tonight so that Papa can take care of Daddy?"

"Daddy okay?" the boy asks.

Alec cannot help the smile that appears on his face. "Daddy will be okay. But he needs to Papa to fix him up so he's good as new tomorrow. Because tomorrow daddy wants to spend the day with you 'cause he's too tired today."

Liam nods. "Auntie Izzy" he repeats with a grin.

Together they drag their feet to Isabelle's room. Apparently, she's anticipated it too because when they knock it doesn't take more than a second for her to answer. She was in pyjamas which was weird and rare. She normally wore those thinly strapped night-gowns. And her hair was done in a large loose bun on top of her head. "Hi Liam" she greets before they could even ask the question. She shoots them a look and says "I know. Now go. You'll see your baby in the morning."

At that moment, if he wasn't half-asleep on his feet, Alec would have hugged his sisters. Instead he lets Magnus make a flying-kiss gesture before she shuts the door to their faces.

"Isn't she great?" Magnus asks in a chipper voice.

"The best" Alec agrees, still leaning heavily on his boyfriend. "If I ask you to carry me, will you?" he says almost inaudibly, lips pressed against Magnus' jaw as he leans. He can, technically reach his room, but there were moments like this when he allowed himself a little selfishness. After today, after Diego's taunting words echoed inside his head, he wanted to do nothing but reaffirm his affection for Magnus. He wanted to wrap himself in Magnus' arms and stay there forever.

In response, Magnus bends down and takes him behind the knees. He kisses Alec once more on the forehead and whispers. "Alexander Lightwood, you know that I would do anything for you." Then he takes them up to Alec's old room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> OMG. This is way longer than the other chapters. You deserve a little extra-loving in the end because you all had to wait do long. I will try my best to post another chapter in the next two weeks (because I have several stories other fandoms that have been taking up so much of my time). I love you TMI-ers! and Malec-lovers! 
> 
> P.S. Does anyone know of a secret-santa for Malec-lovers? I'd love to join one this year. :D 
> 
> PSS. Shimikopriness, my dear, I love you. I'm sorry. Will you please come back and beta for me again? 3


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ultimate thanks to my awesome beta Nerdling_Queen for this chapter!

“Magnus?” Alec murmurs, instinctively searching the sheets beside him for the telltale press of Magnus’ firm body. His lips curve into a frown when his fingers reach nothing but sleep-warm cotton sheets. He shifts further onto the other side of the bed without opening his eyes. After years of sharing the same bed, he has grown accustomed to sharing Magnus’ heat under the comforters.

But today there was nothing.

“Magnus?” Alec says again when he cracks an eye open. He vaguely registers where he is. It’s the familiar colours of his old room that jogs his memory. “Magnus?” he tries again, looking around the room at large. He pushes himself off the bed with shaky arms. “Magnus?” He calls out in a sing-song.

“Easy,” Magnus replies, slipping into the room, his trademark Cheshire smirk on his lips. “I’m right here,” he says, walking easily to the bed. “How are you feeling?”

Alec accepts Magnus’ warm hands running over his face. He allows his eyes to flutter close. “Hi,” he greets with a small smile. Magnus’ thumb curves over his lips. He hums at the affectionate gesture.

“Good Morning,” Magnus tells him. Alec doesn’t have to open his eyes to see the warlock smiling.

“Where have you been?” Alec asks. He’s half-sitting. His legs, folded beneath him, are slightly parted. He leans forward and angles into Magnus’ caress. It causes the narrow strap of his wife beater to fall off his shoulder. He pushes his face further into Magnus’ hand. There’s the sting of cold metal from Magnus’ rings and they intensifies the heat Magnus’ warm fingers.

Magnus bends down and briefly presses a kiss on Alec’s forehead. Alec makes a happy noise. He picks up the fallen strap and deliberately runs the back of his index finger against Alec’s shoulder when he puts it back. He loves Alec like this: freshly woken, sleepy-warm, and not entirely coherent. He likes seeing the soft domesticity that contrasts Alec’s rough Shadowhunter exterior.

“I had rounds to do, darling,” Magnus says. “Isabelle was worried. She came by this morning and wanted me to look at Clary and pretty boy. You know I should charge her for these things. Oh, woe is me and the money I could be making!”

“Pretty boy?” Alec parrots with a curious pout. “So Jace is pretty boy now, huh?” He looks at Magnus with amusement in his twinkling blue eyes. “Should I be jealous now?”

Magnus kisses the pout from Alec’s lips. It’s close-lipped—chaste and sweet–and Alec thinks that he might melt into it. The warlock’s second hand comes up to cup the other side of his face. Alec nuzzles into the warm flesh.

“I prefer your blue eyes to green ones.” Magnus says, chuckling as they part. “You have the most beautiful blue eyes, darling.”

“Shut up,” Alec blushes. He covers Magnus’ hands with his own. He loosely encircles his boyfriend’s wrists, easy enough to slip away. Magnus allows himself to be manhandled onto the bed. Alec tugs

the taller male down and does not settle until Magnus’ lean frame drapes around him. The bed dips with the additional weight as Magnus comes to straddle his Shadowhunter.

Alec snakes his fingers up the hem of Magnus’ shirt. He continues exploring until he feels his boyfriend’s naked skin on. Magnus shudders above him.

“Oh, Alec, you naughty boy!” Magnus squeals from above him. He sounds positively amused. “Watch where you’re touching!” He says between giggles as Alec plays with the dips on his spine. “You’re going to get me all hot and bothered!”

“You still think that Jace is pretty?” Alec buries his face in Magnus’ loud neon pink t-shirt and asks.

“Oh Alexander, you adorable young fool!” Magnus exclaims, planting kisses on every inch of skin of Alec’s face. “Who’s Jace? I can’t imagine comparing anyone to you!” He squirms on Alec’s lap, pressing against the Shadowhunter’s firm stomach. “See?” he says. “Only you, my love.”

Alec bites him on the bicep for the endearment. It makes his boyfriend hiss at the sting. “Did you find anything wrong with them? Jace and Clary?”

Magnus shifts, grinding down on Alec’s thighs. “Clary and Jasper are fine,” he answers. He moves his legs and refolds them until he is fully seated on Alec’s lap. He crosses his ankles playfully and brings their bodies closer. “I think there’s someone else I haven’t checked up on yet.” He declares as he teasingly threads his fingers into Alec’s messy black hair.

“Really?” Alec teases back. He nips against the column of Magnus’ throat, alternating between kisses and small bites. “Who, in angel’s name, might have you forgotten?”

“A mischievous little boy,” Magnus replies and Alec’s hands come to rest over his hips. A single finger traces beneath his jeans. “A very mischievous boy.” He says before pulling Alec’s face up into a kiss. They kiss and kiss and kiss until it feels like forever. Damn, Magnus thought, he could kiss this boy for the rest of his immortal like. He uses his weight to lean forward and pushes until Alec’s back is pressed against the bed.

Alec makes a pained noise and unfold his legs. Magnus takes the opportunity to crawl on all-fours. His boyfriend is laid down, spread across the boring white sheets, in nothing but a loose wide beater and Magnus’ dark bow-tie boxers. He simply does love it when Alec wears his clothes. It compliments Alec’s pale complexion completely.

“My darling Alexander, the gashes on you.” Magnus exclaims, frowning over several angry red lines on Alec’s skin. His cat-like eyes scanning the rest of Alec’s body for other wounds and bruises. “Haven’t I asked you enough times to be more careful with yourself? Always, always rushing to what’s his face’s rescue?”

“It wasn’t Jace.” Alec shrugs and sighs when Magnus rolls his eyes. “Not entirely Jace. The Rosales kids were a bit under-practiced.”

Magnus hums, non-committal. His hands roam over Alec’s body, fingers tingling with blue sparkles of magic. He runs his hands over all that he can heal. More and more of Alec’s skin returns to their normal hue.

“One of them was almost taken out.”

“And they’re alive because of you.” Magnus ends the thought.

Alec shakes his head. “Not just me. It was all three of us.”

Magnus smiles at image that Alec makes: laid out and sleepy-warm on top of lush Shadowhunter sheets. “Brave-” kiss to the stomach “-strong-” kiss on the chest “-humble-” kiss on the cheek. Magnus grins, with all teeth, and eyes staring intensely into Alec’s baby blues. “I must be the luckiest warlock alive. What did I do to deserve you?”

“S–shut up,” Alec stutters. “You should just kiss me.” Magnus gleefully complies. He kisses Alec as tenderly as he could. In his lifetime, he has kissed a lot of people–mundane and Downworlders alike. Nothing, absolutely nothing, takes his breath away as much as kissing Alec does. The day when all this stops being novel will never come.

“You’re wonderful,” Magnus says.

Alec blushes harder at the compliment. He tugs the warlock down, arm over Magnus’ shoulder and hands entwined in Magnus’ spiky hair. He lifts his legs, wrapping it around his boyfriend’s middle and squeezes them together. Alec locks his calves on the small of Magnus’ back and moans as they pressed together from shoulder to hips.

It feel like an eternity since Magnus touched him, far too long since Magnus last touched him beyond innocent teases. He welcomes those touches now, luxuriating in the feeling of Magnus’ fingers over his flesh. It is not remotely enough to quench the deep ache inside him.

“More,” he moans while his hands claw their way under the back of Magnus’ shirt. He loves the way that Magnus arches his back towards him. “More,” he hears himself moaning like a chant but he cannot be bothered to be embarrassed by it. Not when it’s been a millennia since they’ve had time for this–to feel each other as if the rest of the world ceased to exist.

Magnus eagerly responds. He messily pulls down the narrow straps of Alec’s top. He presses small, lazy, butterfly kisses patches of Alec’s exposed skin. The smell of day-old sweat and laundry detergent floods his senses. He should not find it hot but arousal thrums inside his veins.

“Oh sweet, sweet, Alexander,” he says on repeat. “My sweet beloved Shadowhunter,” he adds, murmuring endearments across Alec’s pale flesh. His mouth continues its exploration. Alec feels the hot pleasure of Magnus’ lips to the sensitive skin of his throat. Magnus tongues his Adam’s apple and Alec mewls in shameless abandon.

It feels like the nerves on his neck were directly connected to the rest of his limbs. The strength in his arms leave him and Alec can do nothing but clutch onto Magnus’ back. Even with the help of his runes, he feels powerless against Magnus’ affectionate caress. He lets himself wholly surrender to the enchantment of Magnus’ soft lips.

“Ahh, ahh, ahh!” Alec moans as Magnus’ firm, bellybutton-less stomach goes down on him. “Oh my angel, Magnus!” It’s so good. His senses are threatening to white-out. He curls onto Magnus’ body. Magnus’ drool spills to the cotton white sheets. Alec’s toes curl as the sensation wash over him in waves. “Oh Magnus~”

“You are beautiful. I want to make you scream my name.” Magnus all but growls. His green-gold eyes are narrowing with a predatory gaze. “Scream and beg until your womb is full of my seed. And I won’t stop. I won’t stop until your belly is holding my child.”

Alec arches off the bed, shuddering from head to toe. His entire body trembling at Magnus’ worlds. It was utterly obscene to watch. He clutches desperately onto Magnus’ shoulder and his calves dug into Magnus’ so hard that the warlock hissed in discomfort. Then Magnus was rocking onto him in steady, even beats until let out a silent cry of his release.

The next instant, Alec is crashing their mouths together in a brutal kiss. Alec’s tongue dives into Magnus’ open mouth and kisses him filthy with all teeth. Magnus rides the aftershocks along the motions of Alec’s warm wet muscle plundering his mouth. Because the heavens parted and gifted Alec with the most enthusiastic mouth that Magnus had ever kissed.

When they part Magnus cannot help but stare at the spit-slick, swollen, cherry red lips. He gives in and kisses those parted lips once more. “Well, isn’t it a good morning, indeed!” He says joyously. “I think someone missed me. I absolutely love your morning energy.”

Alec bites his lips and looks away, the flush running down to his chest. Magnus finds it absolutely adorable how Alec is prowling one minutes and blushing like the virgin Mary the next. He runs his fingers over the rosy-coloured cheeks. Alec opens his mouth to speak but three harsh knocks on the door stop him before he could talk.

“We’re busy!” Magnus yells towards the door because Alec is frozen into a statue with embarrassment.

Three knocks hit the wood again, louder this time.

“Get decent!” Isabelle’s voice commands from the other side of the door. And not a moment later: “I swear to Raziel that if you aren’t decent by the count of three, I will open this door whether you are decent or not,” she yells, then immediately starts counting.

Alec nearly pushes Magnus off the bed in his haste. Lucky for Magnus, Chairman Meow has taught him well in the ways of the feline. He quickly lands on the other open space behind Alec, spooning against his Shadowhunter. Alec squeaks and nearly fails at pulling the blanket up their waist before the door begins to open. With a snap of his fingers, the blankets drape around them with a sparkle of blue.

Isabelle walks in like she has every right to do so. She takes one look at them and exhales loudly. She cradles one elbow in her hand and runs a hand over her face. “Please tell me you aren’t naked underneath that,” She says, rubbing at her temples. She is already dressed for the day in a flowing black top that clinched right under her breasts. One of the loose sleeves draped over where her elbows are bent.

Alec want to hide his face under the blanket. His face was red as a tomato.

“Alec, you have a visitor.” She announces, looking to the world like delivering this news was boring her.

“A visitor?” Alec repeats in surprise. “What? W–who?”

“One of the boys from the Mexico Institute. He specifically asked to talk to you.” She says and lets the hand on her face drop to her elbow. Then she turns her attention to Magnus. “You.” She looks at him pointedly. “Try to attract too much attention. It’s not really common knowledge that you can freely come and go.” Alec opens his mouth to say something but she sighs. “I like you, Magnus, but this isn’t really my call. It’s Mom’s.”

“He’s waiting for you in the library. I’ll give you a few minutes to get dressed and, ahem, clean up.” She tell them. When she turns around, she showcases the large open back of her dress. She looks over her shoulder at the last minute. “Liam should be in the Music Room, Magnus. Jace is keeping an eye on him with Clary.”

Alec has wide saucers for eyes, looking like a dear in headlights, by the time Isabelle leaves.

“Know who it is?” Magnus inquires, biting Alec’s ears good-naturedly. Alec shakes his head. “Well then,” Magnus says, teasing the firm shell between his lips. “He can wait a few more minutes.”

***

Jaime Rosales woke up this morning in a haze. He barely remembers yesterday’s events, let alone how he managed to wake up in their Institute alive in one piece. He opens his eyes and the first thing he sees is the low-ceiling above him. He is still in the infirmary and his brother’s right by his bedside holding vigil. He smiles at his brother warmly but keeps silent.

Diego looks like he has fought with a cactus and lost. He has multiple abrasions marring his dark caramel skin and a large piece of gauze making his bangs stick up funnily.

Jaime frowns. He can’t remember his brother being in the Basilica at all. No, he remembers an angel saving him from the Rehab demon when he was certain that he was doing to meet their parents in heaven. He shakes his head. No, it wasn’t an angel. He recalls the boy: dark hair, pale skin, and eyes shining like the midday sun—another Shadowhunter!

He asks Tomas about it during breakfast. His Uncle confirms that a group of Nephilim had followed him to the Basilica and managed to get all three of them back to the Institute alive. The boy who saved him was no boy, at least by Nephilim standards, but a man. He is Maryse Lightwood’s eldest, Alexander, and they had already gone back to New York.

Jaime is saddened that he couldn’t even say a proper thank you. So when Tomas asks for a volunteer to take samples of demon blood back to New York, despite his brother’s dissent, he volunteers. Now, he sits in the New York Institute’s famed Library alone after being brought their by the second of the Lightwood children.

***

Alec shares a shower with Magnus before leaving his room. He indulges in his boyfriend’s leisurely touches under the hot spray of water. He lets Magnus fret over his pale skin to his heart’s content and the warlockdoesdid not stop worrying over every inch of fresh until only the silvery marks of old runes remained on his skin. His hair is still dripping when he reached the library, wearing one of his old shirts that he left behind in the NY Institute. It was one of the only ways to save some of his shirts from the vendetta Magnus had for his wardrobe.

He walks into the vastly open space and immediately spots the form huddled near the fire.

“Hello? I’m sorry for the wait.” he calls out carefully. The figure visibly jumps onto his feet. Alec can dimly recognize him as the boy from the Basilica. “Jaime? What are you here?” says Alec in shock. “How are you even walking around?”

“Hi, I’m Jaime–” Jaime cocks his head meekly and introduces himself. “Jaime Rocio Rosales. I’m one of Tomas Rosales’ wards from the Mexico Institute. I–I didn’t get to meet you yesterday.” He is cleaner than Alec last saw him with several stripes of white gauze decorating his caramel skin. He is wearing a dark olive green v-neck shirt and a white scarf around his shoulders.

“Alexander Lightwood,” responds Alec, extending a hand to Jaime. “Please, call me Alec.”

“Alex… uh, Alec,” Jaime fumbles. “I… I’m here to bring you, err, the NY Institute some demon blood samples from Mexico.” He pulls out a several vials of dark liquid from his pocket.

Alec appraises the small bottles before raising his eyebrow at Jaime. “Is there a reason you couldn’t give this to Izzy? She’s just at capable of handling this as I am.”

“I…” Jaime looks flustered. His eyes dart across the room at everywhere else except Alec’s general directioin then darts his eyes towards the floor. Alec frowns at the display. Great, he thinks, this one’s just like his brother. Jaime keeps playing with his hands, at a loss for words.

Alec tries to be patient with him. He’s handled worse critisism in Clave-sanctioned gatherings every time he went back to Idris. He can handle a single boy with higher-than-angels morals. “Yes?” he presses with a frown.

All of a sudden, a large invisible light bulb lights up in Jaime head and he scrambles back to the chair that he was sitting in. It appears to be something large, box-ish shaped. But the fire place make it hard to Alec to see into the shadows.

“H–here” stutters Jaime as he thrusts a medium-sized paper bag towards Alec. “It’s… thank you.” One hand still extended, he rubs his other hand on the back of his head, still not looking straight at Alec. “Y–yo–you s-saved my l-life.”

Alec stands there like a statute, excepts he’s blinking. Did he hear that right? Did the boy just thank him?

“Uhm, you’re… welcome?” He says, not entirely sure what to do in this situation. He eyes the kid from head to toe. Nothing about the young Nephilim strikes him as being untruthful. There isn’t a trace of disgust that he could almost see oozing from Diego yesterday. He actually kind of looks sincere.

Embarrassment comes rushing in because no one ever bothered thanking him before for doing his job. At least not a fellow Nephilim. It was usually a pat on the shoulder, an acknowledging nod, or nothing all together. Now he’s mortified. Jace should be the one handling this not him; that guy soaked up the spotlight like a sun flower.

“Really…” he says, taking the offered parcel with a small smile. He’s not entirely sure the boy will even see because Jamie seems to think that the floor is oddly entertaining. But who is he to judge? He spent a lot of time doing the exact same thing. Still, he smile anyway figuring that it was the polite thing to do.

“Jaime, this is great and all, but you really didn’t, uhm, didn’t have to go through all this. It was our job.”

“I wanted to thank you. For saving me.”

“Ahh,” says Alec. He peaks curiously inside the paper bag and sniffs. It smells like some kind of spicy food. He can’t remember where he’s smelled it before. He’s only a Nephilim after all, not a werewolf like Luke. “Then I should send these over to Jocelyn and Luke’s.”

“Jocelyn? Luke?”

Alec nods, refolding the paper bag’s opening. “Yeah, Clary’s mom and her stepdad. She doesn’t really live here but she sleeps over after tough nights. Which reminds me, she might actually be here after yesterday.”

“But–but you saved my life!” Jaime’s eyes dark eyes widen.

For the second time this morning, Alec has to take a step back in confusion.

“Did you… come all the way just to… thank me?” Alec asks. He is a hundred and one percent sure that this guy’s little brother almost chewed his head off yesterday for being gay. Then Jaime is fidgeting again. He wants to fidget just because Jaime is visibly being restless. He’s never really been good at being the centre of attention.

The boy nods feverishly.

“I’m flattered, but really…” Alec rubs his free hand up his arm, feeling an imaginary chill. “I’m pretty sure it was Clary who tended did the first aid. She’s kinda handy with that stuff.”

“Oh;” and the boy looks disappointed at the indirect redirect. His eyes dart everywhere except the general vicinity of Alec’s face. He’s found the spot between Alec’s boots particularly appealing. He looks like he intends to burn a hole right back to Mexico.

“I’m sorry. My memory is a bit hazy.” He looks like a bulldozer rained puddle water all over his parade.  

“How about some coffee?” Alec says, waving a hand under the boy’s gaze.

“Yes, please,” answers Jaime as he immediately looks up. He picks a spot right beside Alec’s head and keeps his gaze there. “I mean… if it’s not too much trouble, of course.”

“No, no.” Alec waves his hand dismissively. “I’ll just go put this away in the kitchen and bring you some when I come back.” He nods once then turns to leave. “Be back in a minute.”

“Wait!” Jaime shouts after him with a hopeful expression. “Can I… can I come with you?”

Alec looks back and blinks in Jaime’s direction. Their eyes meet for a brief moment and the other boy almost falls flat on his face. Alec, of course, is clueless of the working in a teenage boy’s brain now that he no longer is one. So he simply shrugs and says “Yeah. Sure,” without thinking too much into it.  

Jaime nearly trips on his own two feet when he hustles to follow the dark-haired Shadowhunter.

(Yes, if you’re wondering. He’s holding an ENORMOUS torch for Alec right now. Am I showing it enough here? Did people get that in Chapter 7?) Yeah, it was pretty damn obvious. He’s adorable. I suggest setting him up with someone nice; he’s too sweet to make him a problem.

***

Jace is sitting behind the enormous white marble grand piano when Magnus enters the music room. The piano is positioned near a corner where large French windows frame it from the back and side. The mid-morning sun is filtering through the light translucent yellow curtains. It’s like walking into one of Michelangelo’s famous murals except with more clothes and more believable human proportions.

“Do Nephilim know nothing but the classics?” he mocks Jace in the light-hearted banter that is their own unique brand of normal.

“Papa!” Liam shouts with childish glee from beside Jace. “Papa! Papa!” He squeals with innocent happiness. I think this is a little redundant. Both adjectives-noun pairs are fine, but they’re the same thing in different words. I suggest taking out one of them.

“Isn’t it/this from your generation?” Jace quips back without missing any notes. He is currently in the middle of Pachelbel’s Conan in D Major, a personal favourite because it is easy on the ears and recognizable to even the feeble-minded.

“You wound me.” Magnus puts a hand over his heart in false offense, hiding his flinch. The blond boy was right for once. “I’m not anywhere near that ancient,” he lies easily. “Why don’t you scoot your angelic bottom off the bench and let a master show you how it’s done? Or are you too scared?”

“You? Really?” Jace raises his eyebrow. It’s clearly a challenge. He looks to Liam, who is sitting beside him. “What do you think, Liam, should I let your papa play for a while?” Liam nods enthusiastically and Jace bows off the bench with grace. He shoots Magnus a look from the corner of his eye.

Magnus fights his grin from showing. He did learn the piano during one of his adventures by none other than the composer himself. He makes a show of sitting down, flicking back the non-existent coattails of his black AC/DC shirt. Then he even wraps his arms around Liam, just for the fun of it. He begins playing one of Chopin’s classics. Nocturne No.8 in D flat, and watches beneath his half-lidded eyes as Jace’s expression goes from smug to utterly speechless. He considers it a win and continues playing.

“Jace, what are you playing?” Clary’s voice comes from the door way minutes later. “It’s beautiful!” She stops dead in her tracks when she sees her boyfriend leaning against one of the walls, arms crossed with a scowl on his face.

“Magnus!” she exclaims while clapping after the warlock finishes. Even Liam is clapping wildly from his side. “You play the piano!”

Magnus stands up and offers a dramatic boy to his audience.

“You were really good!”

“Thank you, Clary.”

“How come you never told us?”

“It’s a skill not commonly requested by Nephilim,” Magnus brushes the entire thing off dissmissively. He snaps his fingers, making blue flames appear. “This, however, your kind is very much interested in.”

“Aww, come on Magnus. You know Alec doesn’t love you just because of your magic, right?” says Clary.

“Luckiest warlock in the world.” says Magnus, knowing there’s a lovesick expression on his face but he could not care less about it. “Isn’t papa awesome, Liam?”

Liam nods and lunges at him. He wraps his small arms around Magnus’ neck and his little legs around Magnus’ stomach. “Papa is the best!” he declares with a big fat grin taking up half his face. “Liam love papa!”

Magnus is agile enough to wrap his arms around Liam before the child falls. “I love you too,” he replies, grinning like a fool. “And you shouldn’t go jumping at things. You aren’t a cat. You could fall.”

“Sowee papa,” he mumbles into Magnus’ neck.

“Isn’t he adorable?” Clary coos. “By the way, Magnus, didn’t you tell me that you were going to check on Alec? Isn’t he awake yet? It’s nearly noon.”

“Alec’s already up,” Magnus replies. He lets Liam down to play on the ground. He rubs three fingers on his hand until light blue coloured smoke begins transforming into smoke-animals. Liam seems to find them very, very fun to try and catch. “Isabelle came by his room and said he had a visitor.”

“A visitor?” Clary asks.

“Yeah. Some Shadowhunter from yesterday.” replies Magnus.

Jace doesn’t hold back his look of surprise. “I didn’t expect any of them to be up and waking this soon,” he says.

“Maybe they’re tougher than you thought, Mr. I’m the best,” Clary teases with hands over her hips. “I wonder who it is.”

“It might be Cristina. She wasn’t that badly hit, just exhausted.” Jace supplies.

“You just wanna see that Hispanic chick again,” Clary accuses him in light humour. “Where did she say they were?”

“The library,” Magnus replies, distracted. He is focused on making a large realistic dragon out of smoke for Liam but it was proving to be difficult in a contained space. He waves it off and makes a large stag instead.

“The library,” Clary parrots. “What will they do in the library?”

“I don’t know” Jace lifts up both shoulders. “Maybe they got the demon’s blood off the denim you ripped.”

She gives Jace a look. “I hope it’s not, you know who.” She whispers.

“Who?” Magnus asks, interested now because of their unexplained shushing. “You hope it’s not?”

“He…” Clary starts. “Oh how do I say this? He wasn’t the most liberal person I’ve met.”

“Liberal? Meaning what exactly?” Magnus pressed.

Clary chuckles nervously. She had a tell when she was nervous and she was doing it right now which made Magnus even more suspicious.

“He’s like Robert.” Jace finishes for her. “You know the whole conservative, Nephilim, sh–stuff like that. Whatever. I showed him not to judge my parabatai so easily. Alec totally kicked a-a-lot of demons back in Mexico. You should have seen him.”

“Yeah!” Clary seconds. “He was so cool! Like ninja-film cool. He was even a lot cooler than Jace.”

“Hey!” Jace sounds off in mock offense. “I was carrying around luggage at the time. I so could have been much cooler than Alec.”

“Ok-ay,” says Magnus, giving them his full attention. “Spill it, Fray.”

“It was the Diego boy.” Clary confesses, looking like she was the one guilty instead of the victim. “She called Alec a…”

“a what?”

“… a freak”

Magnus saw red, blue sparks flying out of his fingers tips. “HE WHAT?!” he all but yelled, slipping into his High Warlock of Brooklyn voice without meaning to.

“Magnus!” Clary looks at him pleadingly. “Don’t. You’re scaring Liam.”

True enough, the boy was in the middle of the room beginning to sniffle. Magnus frowned, more disappointed in himself than the news that he just heard. He crosses the room in two long stride and goes down on bended knees in front of Liam.

“Oh darling,” he murmurs gently. “Papa didn’t mean to scare you. I was just… mad.”

The boy is already in the verge of tears. “Why?”

Magnus has to noticeably bite back his initial sarcastic reaction. He swallows down the bad words that he knows he can’t say in front of Liam. “Papa is mad at bad people. Bag people who say bad things. But not at you, darling. So don’t cry, okay?”

Liam walks right into his open arms and nods.

“Wow,” Jaces can’t believe his eyes even as he sees the scene unfold before him. “You’re good at that aren’t you?”

“Practice” comes Magnus cocky reply. “You and Clary should practice. Shouldn’t you be having kids by now?”

The couple blushes red. It’s hilarious on Clary who is red from her hair down to her neck. She looks like a large tomato replaced her head. Jace, admittedly, looks completely flustered by the statement.

“So, shall we go find Alec and this mystery visitor? I would like to give him a piece of my mind.”

***

Ragnor thinks about that one time in Peru when he threw a magical hissy fit whilst on a boat while itwas in the middle of the ocean. He has gone around the world and back a hundred times in a hundred different ways over his life time. But that one time on the boat only happened once because he’s never been fond of the vast open waters. He prefers land where it’s safe and dry and stable–where it wouldn’t swallow him up at random.

As it was, said plot of land, was swallowing him up at random.

“What?” he asked to no one in particular, confused out of his mind. “Where on earth am I?”

“Ragnor” a creepy voice comes out of nowhere. Or, he just could not see where it was coming from. “Ragno—r” It’s screechy and scratchy and sounds like a someone’s voice acting is really bad. It is almost as bad when Magnus tried to learn the charango. Oddly enough, he finds that memory scarier than his current predicament.

Yeah, he thinks, this is almost as bad as the time he almost died. Except this time, he might actually be a goner for real.

***

Magnus is ready to launch a full-scale magic attack aimed towards the lone homophobic Nephilim inside the New York Institute. He made sure that his left hand was sweat-free for maximum echo-effect and, quite possibly, because Liam was currently holding on to his right hand while they walked to the kitchen. They had already stopped by the library but found it unfortunately empty. It was Jace’s superior sense of finding food that clued them on the fact that it was nearly lunch.

What he didn’t expect was that the sound of chuckling coming from behind the kitchen doors. Alec is inside, seemingly joking around with another Shadowhunter with dark skin, dark hair, and dark eyes. Magnus promptly names him talk, dark and not that handsome.

“Alexander?” Magnus tries to modulate his voice so as not to giveaway his jealousy away. He stows it away and lets it simmer in the bowels of his stomach.

“Magnus!” Alec very nearly squeaks like he’s been caught doing something red-handed but manages to make it sound plausibly steady. “What are you doing in the kitchen?”

Again, Magnus tries not to sound bitter over what looks like brewed coffee. “Liam was getting hungry,” he deadpans. If anyone will call him on the why he’s looking directly at the known Shadowhunter’s direction, he will vehemently deny it like he denies his true age.

“Daddy!” Liam shouts as if on cue. He dashes to Alec and grabs onto his leg.

They haven’t really talked about this. But at the moment, Magnus was too jealous to care. There he said it, even if only in his head. He gives Alec a pointed look, daring his boyfriend to refute it.

“Hi baby,” Alec bends down, scooping the tiny warlock in his arms. “Have you been a good boy for Auntie Clary and Uncle Jace?”

“Ah-huh,” the boy replies. “Papa play piano!”

Alec stares at Magnus, shocked. “I didn’t know you play.”

“Clary said the same thing. I can show you sometime while we are home.” Magnus walks into the room, more confident because his boyfriend is being openly affectionate. He moves close enough to touch one of Alec’s bent elbows. “Who’s your new friend?”

“I’m Jaime,” tall, dark, and not that handsome introduces himself. “Jaime Rosales, from the Mexico Institute. I–I came by to thank Alec for rescuing my sorry bum yesterday.”

“Looks like you’re doing more than just thanking,” Magnus glares at him pointedly. He gives tall, dark, and not that handsome, aka Jaime, the full effect of his narrowed eyes. He knows the cat-slits intimidate most people. “And shouldn’t you be thanking them too? I thought you Nephilim worked in teams?”

“Hi!” Clary waves as she walks closer. “I’m Clary, Clary Fray. I was the one who ripped your jeans yesterday. Sorry about that.”

“Jace Herondale,” says Jace, swooping in beside her. There it was the famous pissing contest already beginning. It really didn’t matter who it was, Jace is overtly territorial of Clary. She jabs him straight in the ribs for it. “Ouch!”

Alec gives Magnus a look. “Be nice,” he whispers “He’s friendlier than the other one.”

“Pray tell, darling, you’ll share what exactly the other one did,” Magnus whispers back. He deliberately breathes against Alec’s ear to see his boyfriend shudder.

“You’re such a child.” Alec rolls his eyes.

“You love me,” Magnus says confidently. He gets a “mm-hmm” in response. Still, he childishly moves just a fraction of an inch closer into Alec’s space. The younger man doesn’t bother calling him on it and stays in place.

“Ahh, right,” Jaime corrects himself. “I brought tamales from Mexico. I thought I could at least do lunch since I was a bit pre-occupied yesterday.”

“Tamales?” Clary repeats with curiosity, She looks around the three men and, indeed, spots the large pot steaming by the stove. “Are those homemade?”

Jaime nods.

“Oh thank angel!” Jace exclaims. “I thought for sure that it was Izzy’s turn to make lunch today.”

Maryse is out for the day. She travelled to Idris early this morning at the first light of dawn. Apparently, Robert has requested her personally to come and discuss some of the theories about the portals. She left Isabelle to take care of the Institute again. Isabelle was blessedly less whiny about the whole affair the second time around.

“Jonathan Christian Herondale!” Izzy’s voice comes from the partition. “You’re so going to regret that!”

“Ouch,” Magnus tells Jace just because he can. Jace flips him off.

They eat lunch with relatively companionable conversation around the table. Less tense than if Maryse had been around because try as she may, she is still a highly matriarchal figure within this set of Nephilim (plus Magnus). They share the tamales brought by Jaime and trade stories. It’s mostly Jace, because he was Jace, telling Jaime about his heroic deeds.

Clary and the rest didn’t actually mind. Except maybe Magnus, because he tends to avoid any sort of contact with Jace on regular days. With Liam partially staying in the Institute, there isn’t really a way around it. The meal winds down. Jace is off to dish duty, dragging Clary along with him because he’s a clingy guy. Meanwhile Isabelle goes to the gym to prepare for Simon’s training.

“So… how long have you two been together?” Jaime asks going straight to the point. He held off his questions earlier in front of the others. He is genuinely piqued by the idea.

“Four years” Magnus answers when Alec freezes up. He leans over the table, careful not to jostle a half-asleep Liam in his arms, to touch Alec’s hand over the table.

“Wow,” Jaime says in awe. “That’s a pretty long time. And is he…?” he motions to Liam without saying a word and they both nod in unison. “Aren’t you supposed to be barren?”

“I am, supposedly” Magnus admits. “It a puzzle even to us.”

There’s a weird kind of silence which falls over them.

“Uhm…” Jamie starts, looking like he doesn’t know where to start. “About Diego. He made a big deal and started mouthing off when I volunteered to come here. I’m really sorry if he said anything to you. He hasn’t been around that much yet.”

Alec bites his lip. “It’s fine. No harm, no foul. I’m used to it.”

“Alexander…” Magnus squeezes his hand.

“No, really,” Alec reaffirms. “You won’t believe half the stuff the older Shadowhunters whisper when they don’t think you’re listening. Really, Jaime, it’s no big deal.”

“But you still saved him.”

“I had to. I may be gay but it has nothing to do with my duties as a Shadowhunter,” Alec grits out, his hands balling into fists.

“I…”

“I think you should leave,” Magnus cuts in. “Don’t you have some Nephilim things that you have to do back home?”

Jaime frowns. He’s been polite so far but he won’t stand for a warlock speaking to him like that.

“Watch your mouth, Downworlder. You’re on Angelic territory,” he spits out.

“No!” Alec raises his voice. “You’re the guest. Magnus is my family. So you be careful of how you speak to him, especially when I’m around.” And there it is again, the same old Alec Lightwood that never ceases to amaze Magnus. It’s the same firey blue eyes that he adore.

“I’m sorry,” Jaime apologizes.

Magnus smoothes his hand down Alec’s back in a gesture that he knows his boyfriend finds comforting.

“I think we’re all a bit wound up.” Alec confesses. The two men beside him nod. “Magnus, I think we should go home for the day.” He turns to Jaime. “You can stay here and sleep whatever it is off or you can go home. Either way, I don’t feel like seeing you right now.”

“I’m sorry,” Jaime repeats.

“I know,” Alec sighs. “So am I. But just not today, okay?”

Alec stands up and brings Magnus by the arm with him. Magnus, in response, moves closer to Alec’s side, holding him by the waist.

“Let’s go home, Alec.” He murmurs into Alec’s hair and the Nephilim hums in approval. “Think Clary will make a portal for us? The subway is terrible this time of the day.”

Alec laughs. “Don’t you have clients today?”

Magnus waves him off. “None that really matter. Just a couple of mundanes asking for mundane things.”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please enjoy~
> 
> [ **Got a prompt?** ](http://arh581958.tumblr.com/)


	11. Chapter 11

Catarina Loss stumbles into her Astoria apartment looking like the walking dead. She probably should be considered a walker given that she's been awake for nearly twenty-four hours after working three straight shifts in the Beth Israel. It's depressing that she's on the seventh floor of an old tenement building built in the 1940s. Hence, no elevators and very, very rickety stairs that squeak under her weight at every step.

She digs into her massive shoulder bag and attempts to dig for her key under the disarray of clothes, empty food packets, and her handwritten spellbook. She sighs and decides, at the last minute, to screw it. She flicks her wrist over the knob and her door swings open but stops abruptly.

Catarina has to push the rest of the way into her apartment. The insides makes her bag look tidy in comparison; a mountain of mail is acting like a door stopper, mixing in with the scrolls and books and parchments that are littered all over her living room floor, and her cup of tea from three days ago is still sitting on the coffee table. She groans at the mess. She hates leaving in such a hurry but there was an emergency in the hospital that needed her attention.

She waves her hand over the mail and snaps at the mug of tea. Sometimes, there are perks to being a Warlock. Her mail automatically gets sorted into bills, personal letters, and marketing rackets. She sets fire to the last pile and picks up the rest. She scans them quickly, then places them back on the counter. There was nothing too vital that needed her attention. She reaches to flick open the switch but nothing happens. She bangs her head on the closed door because she’s forgotten to pay the electricity bills---again.

"Urgh!" she cries out. She goes through her cupboards and pulls out several candles. She'll be working under candle light just like the old days. She enchants them to float above her ceiling, reminiscent of the old Victorian days where everything was lit by candle light. She remembers him, the child she raised for Eva. She won't be able to sleep yet. Not when the free health clinic she's always wanted is dangling like a carrot in front of her face. No she has a problem which she so desperately want to solve.

After a change of clothes, Catarina goes and sits in the middle of the chaos. She raises her hands and all her reading materials follow, levitating off the ground in various heights. Mundane medical books are mixed with her spell book and scrolls. She points a finger to her bag and pulls out several more scrolls in her own long elegant script. She's been reading for days, going through every piece of information she can find--mundane and shadow worlds alike. Today she has to analyze everything.

She closes her eyes, clears her mind, and starts to chant. The words appear in her mind, a blend of symbolic and written languages, from the present to the past, all written down by her own pen in parchment. She calls it the trance, a state where is she can visualize the information in her mind like mentally putting together the pieces of a multidimensional puzzle.

Red.

The colour red.

***

Clary's portals feel different from normal ones. It is wetter, softer, and a whole lot scarier to travel through, especially during the first few missions when she was barely getting by. As time went on, and years rolled in, Clary got a whole lot better at making them with finesse and better direction. They found themselves near their destination instead of two blocks away. She practiced, and practiced, and practiced making them until they were just like any other runes.

Magnus, when he first learned of Clary's portals, was mesmerized by Clary's uncanny Shadowhunter ability. He badgered her for days without fail, wanting to know more in his thirst for knowledge. All she could give him was "I don't know", "I see it in my mind", or "I can just feel it". In short, the whole incident was complete waste of his time. He's henceforth stopped asking Clary questions.

While Magnus can create his own portals, he simply doesn’t have enough magic to at the moment, and he continues to be amazed to witness it come to life in person.

Clary stands in the middle of the lobby, scratching runes on the stone floor with her stele, her brows furrowed in concentration. Magnus had gone to her earlier this morning to ask if she could make a portal back to their apartment, recounting his experience with another Warlock. He was concerned about Liam being seen by other Downworlders. She agreed to make one, for Liam, she told him. He knows that she’s doing it for Alec and him too.

"Okay!" Clary calls out, turning around to face her audience. Her friends and her new family were behind her: Magnus, Alec, Jace, Isabelle, and Simon gathered to watch her work. She has a strange sort of pride coming from them, and, perhaps, blushed a little. Jamie is there too, eye wided and fascinated, as her portal comes to life. "One portal to Brooklyn, at your service" she says with a bow.

"Thank you, Clary," says Alec when he steps closer, holding hands with a son that surprised them all. She still cannot believe that Liam exists because all the Nephilim books claimed that warlocks were barren. He must be sent from heaven, she thinks to herself with a smile.

"Oh, Clary Fray, you never cease to amaze me!" Magnus exclaims with that starry-eyed expression of his. "And to think that your mother wanted to keep all this away from you. Imagine how much of a loss to Nephilim kind that would be, such a pity, tsk-tsk. This portal is beautiful! Remind me to study it again."

Clary can't help but laugh. Same old Magnus, same old antics. "Please, no," she says, defensively waving her hand over her face. "That last time you followed me around, I had glitter on my clothes for a whole month! It's not easy to take off because they keep sticking back on!"

The rest of them burst out laughing.

"Okay enough!" Clary blurts, flushing like a tomato. "Go on," she herds the trio to the portal. "I can't hold this thing for long. So off with you three or you're all taking the subway back to Brooklyn!"

***

Tessa is still in the apartment when they arrive. She's settled herself on the couch with a large fluffy quilt over her shoulder and the Chairman on her lap. She’s absently running her hands over his fur and balancing a book in her other. It's an old leather-bound classic from their old library in London, one of the few that she kept after leaving; a memento of sorts.  She's back to reading the same paragraph again when an orb appears in the middle of the open-spaced living room.

Magnus is still chattering indistinctly when he steps into the apartment. Liam is sleepily cuddled on his arm, tiny legs wrapped loosely around half of the Warlock's waist and his arms outstretched into the water-like reflection. Alec follows them out immediately, hand holding onto Liam's with a lazy smile on his face. It’s the sight of a nearly perfect family.

It is the High Warlock who first sports Tessa lounging comfortably on their couch for the week--month, really--and it stuns him. Magnus' eyes open wide in surprise, freezing him into place as the portal closes behind them with an audible pop. The abrupt change in mood does not go unnoticed. Alec's entire body coils into an action-ready stance, his blue eyes snapping to Tessa's direction.  

"Magnus?" Alec voices out, tone demanding an explanation.

Tessa raises her hand in surrender. "I'm a friend!" she cries out. Her voice seems to break Magnus' momentary self-imposed suspension. He visibly releases the tension in his body but not completely; his postures remains rigid.

"Oh by Lilith," Magnus gasps out, paling. Seeing Tessa reminded him of the reason for heightened protection spells; the note, Ragnor's blood, and the mysterious rune. It was all meant to be hidden from the Clave but not Alec. Damn, the Institute was too risky.

Alec immediately reacts to his boyfriend's shocked demeanour. It takes only seconds for Alec to take out a seraph blade. He calls out its angelic name, blurred and indistinguishable from the speed of his action, and places the tip directly on top of Tessa's heart. The Chairman leaps off the brunette, scampering behind his master.

"Who. Are. You?" Alec questions in a slow, deliberate manner with his straight white teeth bared like razor blades. His normally round blue eyes are narrowed into sharp slits as he watches the woman's every move--every flinch, every breath, every blink. He stares her down, ready to plunge the blade at any second.

"She's telling the truth." Magnus' hands gently encircles his wrist before Alec can move. His eyes are lowered when he speaks again. "Alec, there's something I--we--" he says looking at Tessa "--need to tell you."

Alec's blood runs cold. Magnus' words sound like a bizarre nightmare inside his head, but he drops his blade nonetheless. He lowers his hand to the floor as the seraph disappears before he re-sheaths it back to his belt.  "Okay," he says as steady as he can, nodding.

"Daddy?" Liam's voice floats through the apartment, slicing through the silence which has fallen over the room. It's light and full of fear. Alec realizes, belatedly, that his actions may have scared his sweet little boy. He quickly spins around, cooing the small child.

"No, no, baby." he says, tenderly reaching for Liam's form. "Daddy wasn't mad at you." he looks at Tessa over the shoulder and barks out, "Don't dare move a muscle"

"B---Bu---but" the boy hiccups with tears starting to strain his face. He turns his face away from Alec and starts sniffing into Magnus' shoulder.

The face the Alec makes is devastating and makes Magnus' heart break a little.

Magnus tries his best to shush the weeping toddler, cajoling Liam to stop crying. He reaches up to gingerly pats the boy's back when Liam hiccups. Alec moulds himself to Magnus' side, whispering sweet-nothings into the child's ears until Liam's crying falters.

"There, there," Magnus says quietly. "Look, sweetie, daddy isn't mad anymore. Why don't you go over there and give your daddy a nice long hug, hmmm?"

Liam nods obediently and easily slips into Alec's arms.

Magnus turns his attention back to his Nephilim boyfriend, his muscles coiled tight, and says with a serious expression, "You may want to sit down for this. It involves Liam." He raises his hand, shushes the other man's reaction. "Please understand why I couldn't just say this in the Institute. I wanted to tell you last night but I didn't want to exhaust you any further. So please, Alec, take a seat and let us explain everything to you."

Alec nods in understanding. He goes to sit down on the large purple chair across the sofa. He looks to the unknown woman and suddenly remembers his last words to her. He shamefully averts his gaze.

"Y--you can move. I'm sorry about that---" he waives a free hand, up and down, in her general direction.  "I overreacted." He watches in his peripheral as she lowers her arms and noticeably tries to loosen her limbs.

Magnus snaps his finger and a large egg-shaped chair appears between the Children of Raziel.

"Alec, this is Tessa Gray." He introduces, one hand lightly gesturing to the previously unknown woman. "She's a Nephilim and a Warlock. You've never been properly introduced. She's the Warlock whom Jocelyn once sought help from when she was trying to hide Clary from Valentine. She's also, erhm, William Herondale's wife."

"William Herondale's wife? You mean..." Alec looks down to the child in his arms, wordlessly conveying the rest of his question.

"Ah-he-heh," Magnus laughs uneasily. He runs both of his fingers over the un-spiky part of his hair, using both his palms to press his ears to his head. He nods. "One and the same..." he trails off. Yeah, he thinks, this was one part of the conversation that he was not prepared for. "So out of everything I said, you remember that part, huh?"

Alec blushes. "No, but, I---"

"You are a terrifyingly odd boy." Tessa says lightly, seemingly relaxing because of the exchange. "Most Nephilim start sputtering nonsense when they learn of my true nature. Yet you, young Lightwood, remember me for my husband's name. Fret not, I assure you Magnus' attachment to Will was purely platonic."

Alec blushes even further. "Erhm, so why did I need to sit down for this?"

Tessa produces a small square parchment  from her pocket. Alec gasps when he realizes that the writing wasn't done in regular ink but in blood and an inscription that he cannot understand.

"Who?"

"It's Ragnor's," Tessa answers.

"Have you told the Clave?"

She shakes her head. "Ragnor sent it to me for a reason. We share the same sentiments towards the Clave. I may have angel's blood in my body but I was never raised as a Child of Raziel. The writing on it- it's a rune that I didn't understand so I came to Magnus." She looks to Magnus, giving him a cue.

"It's an old rune, positively ancient. I'm pretty sure the modern texts don't contain it. The symbol means protego, to protect, but since its Angelic in origin, I have no idea what it means."

"And the letter L?" asks Alec, pointing to the scribble towards the side. Magnus tenses beside him.

"Alec..." Magnus leans closer and reaches for Alec's hand. "I think he meant Liam. He's the only thing that connects off these events together."

"We can't tell the Clave." Alec says, thinking aloud, blue eyes dimming as the weight of it settles on Alec's shoulders.  "They'll take him away, won't they?"

Magnus and Tessa nod.

"Then what do we do?"

"Ragnor's figured out something," Tessa says, folding her hands to her lap. "So first we have to find him."

"We've put a tracking spell on him," Magnus tells Alec. "It shouldn't be more than a few days."

"... and we sit around like waiting ducks?" Alec stresses with a hint of annoyance, his jaw flexes as he bites down.  "Magnus, we have a figure out a way to send him back to his own time. It's too dangerous for him to stay here."

"I already doubled-up the wards in the Institute." Magnus says, lightly kissing into his palm. "That's why I was secretly grateful that Isabelle asked me to come over. There are several protection spells. As long as I'm alive and strong, they'll be impenetrable. So is this apartment."

Alec nod, weaving their fingers together. He understands what Magnus is saying but he still reaches out and touches Magnus' hand in comfort. "Thank you," he says, pulling Magnus' hand to his lips in a rare display of public affection. He normally isn’t one to do such things with an audience but these are special circumstances.

"Tessa." Magnus turns to the other Warlock. He snaps his fingers and opens his hand- a box appears seconds later. "I may need you to go back to London," he says, handing her the white object.

"Why?" Tessa asks, looking puzzled. She takes the offered object anyway then glares at Magnus. It was the newest brand of iPhone. "Magnus, if this is some joke..."

"It's not." Magnus shakes his head. "I may need you to go back to the London Institute. Are you still friends with the current family residing there?"

"Jess is still there," Tessa points out.

"Ahh so she didn't cross over to the other side?" says Magnus. "She chose that as her final resting place. Hmmm. Not unusual for Nephilim. But that doesn't matter. Can she grant you access inside?"

"Perhaps," Tessa answers, unsure. "But haven't I already said that the rune isn't in the London Libraries?"

"You're not going there for the rune." he leans forwards and motion for them all to do the same. "This time you're going for him." he says, gesturing to Liam. "I need you to go to the London portal and take photos of Henry's markings. There's some that I've forgotten. I'll need it to remember if we want the chance to send Liam back home."

In a rare gesture of openness, Alec touches Tessa shoulder lightly. She raises her head and stares directly into his unbelievably blue eyes. She remembers Will, the same magnetic blue color.

"Please," he asks her in a soft pleading tone.

"Okay," she nods. "But one of you will have to teach me how to use this thing."

Her last statement breaks the heavy tension which had fallen over the room. Alec and Magnus share a laugh. They break apart, collapsing on their separate chairs.

"That," Magnus amends, "might take awhile, knowing you."

***

There's a knock on the door.

Malcolm sets down the book he had been reading down on the coffee table, and turns to check on the elaborate track sphere that he has set up on the other side of the room. He waves his hand over the area; it glimmers and shimmers until the sphere is hidden under a simple cloaking spell.

Tracking spell or not, it is still his business hours and he still has customers. It’s not professional to let other clients see one another's requests. He walks through the door.

"Malcolm Fade," he says over the mundane intercom. Nifty little things of mundane invention; he finds it rather appealing and convenient to use. "Please state your name and your request, I will be with you momentarily."

There's a crackle of the machine before a voice flows through the speakers. "Malcolm, it's Catarina. May I come in?"

Malcolm cocks his head in confusion but opens the door nonetheless.

"Catarina!" he greets with open arms like an old friend. "What brings you to my humble abode? And why do you look like you're about to fall dead on your feet?"

Catarina stares back at him with bags under her eyes, her hair springing up in places, dressed in a Yankee's pullover. She's carrying a messenger bag that appears disproportionately large for her slim body. She waves off his questions and topples straight for his couch. He flinches when her boots make contact with his glass coffee table.

"Catarina?"

She raises her hand. "Give me a minute," she groans, covering her eyes. He does.

Malcolm goes into his kitchen, a large white-tiled area with stainless steel state-of-the-art appliances, and rummages his cabinets for his rarely used tea much. He's more of a coffee guy but Catarina looks like she's been awake for days and coffee will certainly not benefit her. So he goes for tea instead. He boils a pot, prepares the loose tea, and pour in the boiling water. The fragrance of the tea is nearly instant, flooding through his nostrils. It's Sakura Petals from Japan.

He levitates the teapot and two ceramic cups, not wanting to spill any on his newly carpeted floors. He walks back to the living room. The items soundlessly touch the glass. But when he goes to sit down, he sees Catarina's breathing has already evened out. He sighs and summons a spare blanket from his bedroom, draping it over her. He reaches for his book, licks his index finger, and flips back to the page where he left off.

She hadn’t seemed to notice the sphere.

***

It is a slow day in the New York Institute. With Maryse gone for Angel knows how long, and their previous mission in Mexico finished, the Shadowhunters have a rare free day on their hands. They each make use of it differently: Alec goes home to Brooklyn with Magnus and Liam, Simon heads to Beth Israel to see Catarina about his shoulder, Jace and Isabelle are in the music room alternately playing various musical pieces and instruments, and Clary chose to do some sketching.

Clary enters the library fully intending to spend the rest of the afternoon sketching the view of Manhattan from the large panel window and finds that she is not alone. Jamie is sitting by the fire, book in hand, reading. His profile is gorgeous, only emphasized by the slow burning embers from behind him, and his skin is a stark contrast to the grey stone fireplace.

"Alec?" Jaime calls out, his head perks up at the sound of the door closing.

"No," Clary says lightly, shaking her head and waving her hands in front of her with a slightly awkward smile on her face. "Just Clary. Sorry to disappoint you." She hadn't meant to be teasing, but Jace has rubbed off on her and it sounded like she had.

Jaime goes beet red. "No, it's okay. I--I just thought he came back, that's all." He hugs the large hard-bound book to his chest with both arms and ducks his head.

"It's alright." Clary smiles and leans against the back of the sofa. "I'm sorry that I'm not Alec though. He won't be back until later tonight for rounds. Were you waiting for him?"

Jaime ducks his head further into his arms.

"Jaime?"

"N--no... I wasn't waiting for him, not really," Jamie denies. He scratches his nose with his index finger, then the side of his face, his eyes bolted around the room at large. "Uhm... nobody showed me how to use the portal here.. so, I just stayed here in the library and waited for someone to come." He tells her, with a face full of awkwardness and embarrassment.

"Couldn't you use the one over there?" she asks, pointing to the NY Portal at the end of the room. She is genuinely curious. Despite being a Shadowhunter for years now, she isn't overly fond of using regular portals from transportation. She hasn't opened an regular portal in years. It's usually Maryse operating the doors when they get sent out and she makes portals going home, or they walk if she couldn't.

Jaime shakes his head then looks at her oddly. "Every portal is different." he explains. "W--weren't you taught that in the Academy?"

"I never really went. Haha. It's a long story." This time, Clary shares her head before laughing uneasily. "Can you tell me about portal magic?"

"Uhm, sure?" answers Jaime. They walk closer to the portal before he starts to explain. He points his index at the symbols. He shows the five runes at equidistant intervals along the frame of the portal door. "Each door is different from the rest like, uhm, each Nephilim has a different special ability? I'm not sure how to explain. But each door is unique so that it opens up to a specific location around the world. So... you need to know how to operate the door or you can get lost."

"Like a fingerprint or DNA?" Clary asks, reflecting how she uses her portal runes. The symbols were completely different from her own. It didn't make sense.

"DNA? What's that?" Jaime answers with a question.

Right, Clary remembers, Nephilim school doesn't have the normal American education standards that she had to suffer through. "Never mind," she says, waving it off. "Do you want me to just make you a portal like a did for Alec and Magnus? I'm not really good with regular portals for obvious reasons."

Jaime looks positively relieved by her offer. "If you don't mind, that would be awesome."

It only takes Clary a few minutes to draw her runes, with Jamie closely watching beside her in fascination. He curiously peers over her shoulder, observing as one by one Clary draws the varying symbols with her stele. Jaime has never seen anything like it in his life, the symbols or the technique that the older girl was doing.

"Those runes," Jaime points them out, "look different. I've never seen them in the Grey Book."

Clary turns to him and nods. "You wouldn't because they aren't."

His only response is a blatantly bewildered expression.

"I can sort of make up runes and they work...?" she tries explaining. "You... don't really want to know the whole story about that." she says dismissively. "Here, the portal is finished. I've been to the Mexico Institute so this will probably take you to the main hallway because that's the place I remember more vividly than the rest. It works just like a regular portal. No need to worry, you've been through one before when we portaled near the Basilica. But.. you were unconscious."

"Ahe-heh." Jaime tries to laugh but it comes out stiff. He doesn’t look like they type of person who was used to being saved rather than the one doing the saving. In a few ways, he reminded her Alec. He visibly straightens himself enough to shake her hand. "Thank you, Clary, for saving my life and this. I hope that one day I'll be able to repay you."

She pats him on the shoulder gingerly. "Jaime, in our line of work, I really hope that it doesn't happen. But please, feel free to come by anytime, maybe I'll know how to use the regular portal then." she says before he completely disappears through the water.

"He just left?" Jace suddenly quips from behind her. Clary jumps, portal collapsing as she lost her concentration. He leaning against the oval table, arms crossed and ankles crossed. "You're too nice, Clary. That guy gives me the creeps just like his brother."

"Hey," Clary chastises with a frown. "I happen to think that Jamie is way better than his brother Diego. That guy was a douchebag. Jaime, not so much. You're just weirded out because Jaime likes Alec. You aren't used to it. You," she says humorously, pointing an accusing finger at Jace, "aren't as liberal as you think you are. Open up your mind, Jace, there are other gay Nephilim out there that are still scared to come out of the closets because of the heterosexual social norm."

"Heterosexual social norm?" Jace repeats mockingly. "Who are you and what did you do to my girlfriend?"

"It's called getting a college education." Clary argues back as she steps closer to him "You know, real world stuff other than killing demons?"

"Very funny, Ms. Fray," Jace laughs. "But seriously though. I just never thought that there would be other like Alec and Aline. It's... not something that I grew up accepting. We used to get stripped of our marks for that kind of thing; it's not a light punishment, it's the worst. You've never seen it happen."

"Have you?" She questions him softly, looking him in the eye with concern "Seen someone getting their marks stripped?"

Jace shakes his head. "But I've heard it when I was very, very young. I don't think it was in New York. I think it was way back in Idris before everything else happened. The screams, Clary, it sounded like someone was dying over and over again." He’s shaking, now.

"STOP!" Clary shouts, folding her hands over Jace's ears. "Don't remember. Don't go there, Jace." She says firmly. "Come back here, come back to me. If it's going to take you back to a dark place then don't try to remember. Don't tell me. Just stay, okay?"

Jace covers his hands over hers and closes his eyes. They stay like that for a long time, quietly breathing each other’s air, listening to the blood that flows within their veins. Because sometimes, they need to remember just how close they were to losing each other. It makes times like these more precious to both of them.

"Okay," he says finally, exhaling deeply. "I'll stay right here."

"Good." Clary pushes up to her toes and kisses him lightly on the forehead, then the cheek, then his lips. It’s not always nice to be the short girl. She hated having to go on her tippy-toes but she knows that Jace likes it, for whatever reasons that she will never understand.

"Where's Isabelle?" she asks when the kiss ends. They don't completely pull apart though, they’re still pressed together knees to chest. "Did you guys finish your concert a little too early? There's still a lot of time before we go on our patrols."  

"With Simon," he answers against her mouth. "He came back early, says Catarina wasn't on shift today."

"Hmmm," hums Clary when Jace starts nosing along her jaw and his hands drifting to her waist. "And please do not let me guess where they are. I think I already know."

Jace hums along with her. "Yup~" he singsongs. Then with one swoop of his arm, he scoops her under her knees and carries her against his chest---like a bride. "I think I'm a little jealous. Why don't we go have some fun of our own?"

Clary hits him on the shoulder, laughing, but doesn't deny the request. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, to my wonderful beta [ Nerdling_Queen ]() is the **best** person ever!  <3

**Author's Note:**

> This story is **incomplete**. I can't figure out how to uncheck the "complete" box. :( Every time I post a chapter it becomes the last chapter in the story. Putting up the tag here.
> 
>  
> 
> [ **Got a prompt?** ](http://arh581958.tumblr.com/)


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